The Game Changer
by Figments of Delusion
Summary: Tony Stark: womanizer; he meets a woman, smiles, and they're his (at least for the night). And then he met Evie: sweet, naive, bubbly, too-innocent-for-Tony-to-taint Evelyn Marie Addams — a possible game changer. Tony/OC. Repost and revised edition.
1. How to Get a Life

**Chapter One:_ How to Get a Life_**

* * *

><p><strong>MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: THEATER DISTRICT<strong>

She breathed in and out steadily.

_Focus_.

Though her nerves were trembling, and her heart rate elevated, she had to remain and appear calm, collected, and professional.

_Focus. He is watching._

"Come on, ladies, get those legs up – higher, higher!" Sophia, the choreographer, clapped and continued to watch the dancers warm-up with scrutiny.

However, Evelyn wasn't worried about Sophia, she was more preoccupied about Marcus, the resident director, who was watching the dancers on the sidelines. The next production had been announced, and they would be doing a slightly altered adaption of _Swan Lake_, and this was Evelyn's time to shine. She always got picked to be in the production, but never got to be the lead role. This time would be different. She practiced night and day, perfecting every move of the Swan Princess.

Marcus passed through the rows of dancers, tapping a selected few on the shoulders. He tapped Evelyn, and her heart swelled with hope. She forced down a huge smile from spreading across her face. Marcus usually tapped the girls he wanted to stay behind, to discuss the upcoming production.

"All those who I have tapped on the shoulder can continue with their warm-ups. Those who I have didn't tap, come with me," came Marcus' announcement.

Evelyn's limbs froze. She was not even in the _audition_?

"Evelyn, focus!" Sophia snapped.

Evelyn obeyed, even though tears blur her vision.

**[·]**

"Marcus, Marcus!" Evelyn called for the attention of the director she was currently chasing down the hall of the theater. Practice was over, and Evelyn was ready to head home to her cramp apartment, but not before she could ask Marcus why she wasn't chosen to be apart of the upcoming production.

"Yes, Evie, what is it?" Marcus stopped in front of his office door, turning to face her.

Suddenly, Evelyn felt nervous, again. She never liked confrontations. She would lose because she preferred to please others rather than have anyone angry with her. She cleared her throat and tucked a lose strand of her dark wavy locks behind her ear. "W-why wasn't I chosen to be in the..." She licked her dry, chapped lips, too scared to finish her sentence, and just hoped that Marcus knew what she was trying to bring up.

He did, and he sighed. "Look, Evie. You really are one of the most hard working dancers in the company, but ... for _Swan Lake _... you no doubt would be a terrific White Swan-"

"So what's the problem then?" Evelyn scowled.

"I was getting to that." Marcus was annoyed by Evelyn's interruption. "Evie ...you are no Black Swan."

Evelyn blinked, lightly tilting her head to the side. "What does that mean...?" she benignly inquired.

"For this production of _Swan Lake_, I am planning on having the same dancer play both roles," Marcus explained. "And, you ... are just too innocent and naive to to play that part of the more ..." he trailed off, again, becoming wary. "...seductive and deceiving Black Swan."

Marcus pointedly gazed down at Evelyn's clothes when he spoke, and she followed his gaze. She was wearing white stockings, black Mary-Jane shoes, and a long pale pink coat with large, round black buttons that were covering the traditional black leotard that she was still wearing underneath.

So because she liked to wear cute clothes, she was not getting the part?

Evelyn pushed up the large-rimmed glasses that she preferred to wear when not performing (she hated contacts, they sting). "I can be more..." she didn't know how to continue her sentence, dejected about the subject of not being 'seductive' enough. "...Black Swan-e," she finished, her tone extremely low and quite, practically mumbling the words, like a child being denied desert before supper.

A large grin spread across Marcus' face, and he laughed. "Evie, there is nothing wrong with the way you are now. You're a pocket full of sunshine, and if you got out more often, you wouldn't worry so much."

"But I want the part," Evelyn whined childishly, probably not helping her case and further proving Marcus' point. "I know all the moves and-"

"Evie, Evie stop." Marcus firmly grasped Evelyn's shoulders. He dipped his head low to gaze right into her eyes. "You are trying too hard. If you keep this up, you'll burn yourself out way before your time."

Evelyn opened her mouth to speak, but Marcus hushed her. "You are the first one here in the morning, and the last to leave. You. Need. To. Relax. Take a break."

"Take a break?" Evelyn squeaked in shock, her mouth agape. "What? Why? What did I do?" she panicked. "Is it because I peed myself a little that one time? I'm sorry! It's just that we were right in the middle of practice and-" Evelyn was quieted by Marcus' hand clamping over her mouth.

"This is exactly why: Because you get too worked up," he explained, removing his hand. "Dancing is meant to be fun, not a way of life. Don't you have any other hobbies besides ballet?"

"Of course I do," Evelyn chortled. Although, when Marcus waited for her to continue, she couldn't. She was dumbfound; lost for words.

"Exactly," Marcus deadpanned.

Again, Evelyn was close to tears. She practiced so hard for the part, and she was not going to get the chance to audition for it, nor was she going to be a part of the production, period. And now because she suddenly grew a pair in order to confront Marcus, she was being forced to take an unwanted break from work.

"Auditions for the role are in two months," Marcus seemed reluctant to divulge. "If you take that break, you can come back and audition for the role of Swan Princess."

"Really?" Evelyn beamed with delight.

"If you tell anyone, I'll deny it," Marcus firmly declared. "As resident director, I'm not allowed to have favorites."

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Evelyn squealed and threw herself at Marcus, tightly wrapping her arms around his lean waist.

"Yeah, yeah. Just get out of here. Go and have some fun," he commanded softly, without fire behind his words.

"So...?" Evelyn impishly smiled up at him, biting her bottom lip. "I'm your favorite?"

"Don't make me regret it," he muttered.

Her grin morphed into a broad, toothy smile. "Your secret is safe with me."

**[·]**

Slamming the trunk of the rental car closed, Evelyn bounced over to the drivers side. "It's only two months," she uttered to herself while turning on the car and buckling her seat-belt. "I can last two months away from New York," she tried to encourage herself.

Pulling away from the curb in front of her apartment building, driving into the parking lot like traffic, Evelyn's cell-phone rang. Pushing a button near the radio, she answered the call, "Hello?"

"Why aren't you taking a plane like a normal person?" The voice of Evelyn's younger sister, Rachel, came from through the speakers.

"Because I thought that a road trip would be fun and relaxing. I can see the sights that everyone is raving about," Evelyn replied. She hadn't been out much since she moved to New York, only when she was apart of a traveling production, and even then, she never really left the hotel the company put them up in.

"Evie, to get out of New York traffic alone takes, like, five hours."

Evelyn scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. It can't possibly take that long." Although, for how long she had been in New York (which is going on nine years), Evelyn had only taken the subway rather than a car. "Besides," she added, mumbling, "I've already rented a car."

"Oh, Evie..."

"What?" Evelyn shrugged, seeing no harm in taking a five-day-to-week long drive to Malibu, where she was going to stay with Rachel for the two months of no dancing. "It should be fun."

**FIVE DAYS LATER  
><strong>**50 MILES OUT OF LAS VEGAS**

Evelyn sat cross-legged on the trunk of the rental car, her chin propped up on top of her hand, while her elbow rested on her knee.

"Stupid Rachel," she grunted. "Jinxed me."

Evelyn was only a few hours away from Malibu when the dang rental car breaks down. Luckily, Evelyn got the insurance, but still, how was she going to get to Malibu now? She was in the middle of nowhere! Sure, cars zoomed by her, leaving the city of Vegas, but did any of them stop to help a lady in need? No. If Evelyn saw someone stranded on the side of the road, _she_ would pull over and offer her help, because she was cool like that; although, she knew nothing about cars, but that was besides the point!

People were just rude these days.

There was always the option of walking the fifty miles back to Vegas and getting a plane ticket like Rachel told her to, but it was too far a walk for the current heat and lack of water. Plus, Evelyn didn't want to call Rachel to go and pick her up at the air port once she landed, because then Rachel would lord it over Evelyn's head that she was right and then fuss over how dangerous it might had been for Evelyn to be stuck in the middle of the desert all by herself, blah, blah, blah. Even though Evelyn was older, Emily had always treated her like she was the younger Addams (although, she had good reason to).

Evelyn followed in her mother's footsteps of being a performer. Rachel took the more 'logical' approach and went to college and then started her own (and very successful) catering business. And while Evelyn remained single, too focused on her dancing career, Rachel settled down, got married, and has two kids: Danny, who was a year and a half, and Samantha, who was four going on five.

"Car trouble?"

Evelyn yelped and nearly fell off of the car at the sudden male voice. Collecting her composer, she peered over her shoulder, toward her savior who she didn't hear pull up. He had tanned skin, a broad chest broad shoulders (an athletic build), and a well trimmed goatee with dark-brown, wind-blown hair. He didn't appear to be some kind of psycho, and his silver car looked shinny and quite expensive even though he was casually dressed: gray cotton shirt, simple jeans, and brown boots.

"Oh, YES, thank you!" Evelyn was delighted to see that at least _one_ person in the world had the decency to help her. She scrambled off of the trunk of the car and dashed over to the kind stranger. "I don't know what's wrong with it. I put a tank full of gas before I left the city."

"Let's take a look. Do me a favor and pop open the hood," the kind stranger commanded, patting the side of the car.

At first, Evelyn was confused by what he meant by "pop open the hood", but once she saw him head to the front of the car, it donned on her and she rushed over to the driver's side of the rental car. She pushed the button that opens the hood of the car and then jogged over to the stranger to see if she could offer some assistance in getting the car started.

"Wow," the stranger muttered. "This engine is filthy."

"Is that bad?" Evelyn wondered, peering at the car's engine. She had no clue what she was looking at.

"We'll have to see. Can you try and turn it on for me?"

Evelyn nodded, even though the stranger couldn't see because his gaze was focused solely on the engine. Evelyn slid into the driver's seat and turned the key in the ignition. The engine sputtered, but did not turn on.

"Try pressing the gas!" the stranger directed.

Evelyn did as told. Still, the car did not turn on. She stuck her head out of the car and asked, "What's the verdict, Doc?"

The stranger closed the hood and shook his head. "Not good. I can't fix it here because I don't have the proper tools." He went on to say something about changing the oil because it got too thick and was clogging some tube thingy, plus some cylinder ma-bob needed a good cleaning; he completely lost her after changing the oil.

"Well, I guess I should call the rental company," Evelyn remarked, blowing air out of her mouth. "How long do you think it takes a tow truck company to come?"

He quirked a brow. "Depends. Do you feel like sleeping in a car?"

Evelyn groaned, throwing her head back.

"Where were you headed, anyway?" the stranger asked.

"Malibu," she answered.

The man nodded once and his eyes roamed over Evelyn, from head to toe. "I can give you a lift." He shrugged. "That's where I'm heading myself."

Evelyn raised a brow. "You're not some psycho rapist, are you? Because if you are, I've got some mean pepper spray in my bag: it burns like hell and may even blind you for life."

The stranger regarded Evelyn as if she suddenly grew a second head. "You have no clue who I am?" he gaped, flabbergasted.

"You weren't on America's Most Wanted were you?" she warily questioned.

He cracked a smile. "Something like that. Name's Tony." He held out his hand for Evelyn to shake, which she accepted; his hand was much larger than hers, thick and callused - he definitely used them.

"Evie," she replied.

"So, how about that ride?" Tony asked, pointing over his shoulder, at his silver car.

**[Tony]**

Against Pepper's wishes (more like orders) Tony drove to Vegas for a weekend of relaxation. Endless drinks, gambling, and women — how could he resist? And after quickly checking out of the hotel that morning, leaving what's-her-name in bed, Tony was on his way back to Malibu.

Casually speeding, he so happened to glance out of the passenger's window and spotted a tiny red ford parked off to the side of the road. At first, he was going to shrug it off, but once he noticed the woman perched on top of the trunk, he had to do a double-take. He expertly (and illegally) did a U-turn and slowed down his speed so that he could get a better look at the woman. She had to be attractive in order of him to stop and offer his _services_. Tony Stark did not stop and pull over for just anyone.

Satisfied that the woman was indeed attractive enough, Tony, again, did an illegal U-turn and got out of his Audi.

"Car trouble?" he called out.

The woman nearly fell off of the trunk, and Tony's reflexes were to try and catch her before she fell (possibly adding some brownie points to convincing her to sleep with him), but she regained her balance and turned to look at him. Tony suppressed a smile from spreading across his face. She was more attractive than he thought: dark hair that was messily pulled back into a pony tail, with straight cut bangs, creamy white skin, full rose-colored lips, and—his favorite feature so far—big, round blue-eyes that were hidden behind a pair of thick black-framed glasses. And when she scrambled to get off of the car, Tony got a good look at her petite and slender figure, and he was sold. This woman was worth helping.

**[·]**

Tony was back on the road to Malibu, except this time he now had a companion: Evie, a woman who had _no_ clue who he was. How was that possible?

He glanced at her, and saw that she was sitting quietly on the passenger's seat with her eyes roaming the interior of his Audi. Tony tried to suppress a grin; women could never resist the car, and even though Evie didn't know who he was, she was still in the bag, or in other words, the sack.

"You must be paying a fortune for this car," Evie commented. "I could barely afford to rent the Ford."

"This isn't a rental," Tony replied. "I own it."

"Really? Wow. Are you a doctor or something?"

"I... uh... own my own company," Tony tried not to brag too much. He never had to explain who he was to a woman before, and it felt kind of awkward. He was used to them flocking to him by the numbers, hoping that after one night of passionate sex, they would become Mrs. Stark.

"What is it called?" she asked.

He shifted in his seat. "Stark Industries."

"Your last name is Stark?"

Tony nodded and thought that _now_ she would know who he was, but she didn't, and instead said, "Mine is Addams. Evelyn Marie Addams."

"What do you do?" It was Tony's turn to ask.

"I'm a dancer," she didn't hesitate to state proudly.

Tony was mind-blown. Evie did not look like the type to be a dancer, but maybe that was why she broke down outside of Vegas? Tony suppressed a smile. His night with Evie was certain now that he knew she was an exotic dancer. Perhaps he could ask her out on an 'intimate' dinner date for two when they reach Malibu, afterward they would hit a club or bar, have a few drinks to loosen her up, and then they could head to his beach house for the evening.

"What's in Malibu?" he wondered, because if she was going for something depressing, like a funeral, he would have to bait his time in wooing her.

"My sister. I'm taking a bit of a break from dancing to visit her," she answered.

Tony detected a bite in her tone, but he left it alone. He was not interested in her personal life. Deciding to change the subject, no longer wanting to make small talk, Tony offered for Evie to put on the radio to whatever station she'd like. He needed her to be comfortable around him in order for him to make his moves on her; he wasn't some ass who seduced a woman who wasn't willing.

"Can I?" she double-checked. "I actually made a little mix CD for the long drive."

"Yeah, go ahead." Tony nodded.

**[·]**

"...can't read my, can't read my, no he can't read my poker face," Evie sang and danced in her seat. She faced Tony, sang more of the lyrics, and did the Vogue dance move around her face.

Tony couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle underneath his breath. Evie's 'little' mix CD was filled with nothing but upbeat songs which she knew the words to. Some even were in Japanese and other foreign languages. Tony had to admit, Evie was definitely something: energetic, bubbly, and just full of positiveness.

"What's wrong? You don't like Lady Gaga?" Evie stopped dancing, gazing at Tony.

"No, no – she's... good," Tony squirmed to say. Lady Gaga wasn't his first choice when it came to listening to music. He preferred classic rock, or even a bit of modern rock.

"Ah, I see." Evie nodded seriously and then smiled. "You're the kind of guy who likes rap music, right?" When Evie tried to mimic some gang signs, Tony laughed. Yes, Evie was definitely not what he was expecting when he first picked her up. She was ... cute.

"No, I don't like rap music," he responded.

"Then what type of music do you like?"

"Rock. Plain and simple."

"What are some of your favorite bands?"

Tony glanced at Evie, momentarily blindsided. Out of all the other women he dated (Can he even call it that? Dated? They were nothing more than one-night stands), not a single one of them asked what kind of music he liked, or showed much interest in knowing anything about his personal interests, like Evie looked like at this exact moment.

"AC/DC is my top favorite," he answered.

"Never heard of them," Evie bluntly replied.

"You've never heard of AC/DC?" Tony's brows shot up to his hairline.

Evie shook her head.

"Hit "next album" on the radio," he ordered and nodded over to the radio. Surprisingly, Evie pushed the button and stopped her own music without hesitation.

**[Evelyn]**

Evelyn and Tony listened to Tony's entire collection of AC/DC CDs that were in his car's built in CD player during the drive to Malibu. They laughed when Evelyn actually knew a few of the songs (from listening to the radio back at the studio), to which she and Tony sang together - loudly, at the top of their lungs.

"Just take a left at the upcoming stop sign; my sister's house will be the fifth one on the left," Evelyn instructed.

Tony slowed to a stop at the correct address, and he lowered down the music. Evelyn unbuckled her seat-belt and gets out of the car. Heading to the trunk—which barely fitted her three large suitcases—it popped open, and she began the struggle to pull the heavy bags out of the compact space.

"Let me get those for you," Tony offered and effortlessly pulled out all three suitcases. Plus, he helped Evelyn roll them up to Rachel's front door.

"Thank you SO much for the lift, Tony, I really appreciate it. I probably would still be waiting for that tow-truck," Evelyn thanked him with as much earnest as she could muster.

"It was no problem," he leisurely replied.

With Tony's strong eye contact, Evelyn shifted her gaze shyly. "Well, if there is any way that I can repay you, tell me, and I'll do it, no problem."

"Now that you mention it..." Tony smiled slyly.

Evelyn tilted her head, puzzled. Was there already something he wanted to ask her?

The front door creaked open, and the excited voice of Rachel Blake (nee Addams) trailed off. "Evvv... huh?"

"Rachel!" Evelyn squealed in happiness and engulfed her sister in a hug. Rachel was a tall, slender and fair-skinned beauty with long flowing blonde hair; completely opposite from that of Evelyn.

When Evelyn pulled away, she noticed that Rachel was staring awestruck over her shoulder, at Tony. "Oh! Rachel, this is Tony. Tony, this is my sister Rachel."

"Nice to meet you." Tony held out his hand for Rachel to shake, which she did so hesitantly. Tony turned his attention back to Evelyn. "Give me a call when you have some free time on your hands," he said as he fished out his wallet from his pocket. He handed her a white business card.

"Okay," Evelyn agreed, briefly looking over the 10-digits. She went rigid, though, when she felt a soft pressure on her cheek. Eyes wide at Tony's kiss, a wide, goofy smile spread across Evelyn's face when Tony winked at her and headed back to his car.

"Oh, stop," Rachel scoffed and yanked Evelyn inside.

"My bags," Evelyn whines when Rachel left the luggage outside, closing the door.

"Richard," Rachel called out her husband's name. "Can you please bring in Evie's bags to the guest room while I reprimand her?"

Richard Blake, a handsome dentist with brilliant straight white teeth, chiseled features, and short, cropped brown hair, sat up from his place on the couch in front of the TV. "Sure, no problem," he answered, while at the same time Evelyn gawked, "Reprimand? Why, what did I do?" her voice slightly squeaked.

After Richard retrieved Evelyn's suitcases from outside and disappeared down a hall that lead to the bedrooms, Rachel snapped at Evelyn. "Are you crazy?" she whispered harshly. "Do you have _any_ idea who that guy was?"

"Yeah, of course," Evelyn responded, bland. "That was Tony. I just introduced you to him."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "No, you idiot," she grumbles. "That was Tony _Stark_."

Evelyn blinked. "And...?"

"And?" Rachel's jaw slacked. "What were you doing with him?"

"He was just being nice and gave me a ride after my rental car broke down; it was no biggie."

"He was only being nice just to get into your pants. He seduces women into sleeping with him, and then the next morning he dumps them like yesterday's garbage."

"Really?" Evelyn touched the cheek that Tony kissed. "Wow, he's good."

"No." Rachel spoke in a motherly tone and slapped Evelyn's hand away from her cheek. "You are not allowed to have any association with Tony Stark while you're here, you got it?"

"But-"

"Evie."

"Maybe-"

"Evie."

"Rachel."

"No."

"Fine." Evelyn pouted and stormed off down the hall that Richard disappeared into, only to backtrack back to Rachel. "Where's my room?"

"First door on the left," Rachel answered with a shadow of a smile.

"Thank you," Evelyn huffed and stomped into her room. She threw Tony's card on the nightstand before plopping down on the bed. She stewed in her anger for a total of five seconds before she started to grow bored.

On the nightstand where she threw Tony's card, she saw a picture frame containing an old black and white photo of her deceased mother. Evelyn gazed at the picture for a few moments before sucking at her teeth and patting her legs, wondering what to do next. She spotted her luggage neatly placed by the door and decided to unpack. The first thing to come out was the most important object in her suitcases: a calendar. After pining the calendar up on the wall, Evelyn crossed out another day leading up to the _Swan Lake_ auditions in almost two months, and then began to slowly unpack the rest of her belongings. The more time she took, the better. That was one of the reasons why she chose to take the long drive: to eat up time.

Remembering Tony's card, Evelyn picked up the crumbled parchment and tried to flatten it out.

'_He seduces women into sleeping with them, and then the next morning, dumps them like yesterday's garbage.'_

_He was good,_ Evelyn stated to herself, sucking her lips into her mouth. _I probably would have gone out with him if Rachel hadn't told me not to_.

'._..And, you... are just too innocent and naive to to play that part of the more ... seductive and deceiving Black Swan.__._'

_Seductive and deceiving, _Evelyn continued to ponder. Her face brightened as an idea crept up into her brain. _Tony can teach me to seduce women! No, wait, men!_

About to grab her cellphone, Evelyn stopped. It was getting late into the evening. The last time she checked the time was in Tony's car, and it was nearly 10:30; that was quite some time ago. He was probably home and asleep by now. She would have to wait until tomorrow morning to call him. Don't owners of company's wake up supper early for, like, work and stuff?

Instead, Evelyn called up Marcus to give him another update about her 'break'. She didn't care about waking him up.

**[·]**

"Good morning, everyone," Evelyn announced cheerfully, strolling into the breakfast room in nothing but a fluffy robe and house slippers.

"Aunt Evie!" Samantha, beamed, revealing a syrup covered face.

Danny, giggled and squealed, slamming his palms on his high-chair counter, smashing his pancakes in the process.

"How are my two most favorite people in the world?" Evelyn kissed the sticky cheeks of both her niece and nephew.

"Good," Samantha replied, going back to eating her pancakes.

"That's wonderful." Evelyn sat down at the table, and Rachel placed a cup of coffee in front of her. "Where's Richard?" she asked her sister.

"At work," Rachel answered. "He got a call around five from one of his regulars. The idiot lost like three of his teeth during an amateur boxing match."

"Aunt Evie? Can you get me something out of the friger friger?" asked Samantha.

"That's what she calls the refrigerator," Rachel quickly explained in Evelyn's ear.

"Wha... really? Aww, cute." Evelyn cooed. "Why of course I can get you something from the friger friger. What do you need?"

"CeeCee wants milk with her pancakes," Samantha answered.

"Well, CeeCee can't have any because she never finishes it," Rachel intervened, collecting Samantha's plate of pancakes. "Why don't you and CeeCee go out back and play before it's time to take you and Danny to Tumble Tots?" she added after wiping the four-year-old's face clean.

"'kay!" Samantha jumped off of the chair and ran outside from through the sliding door, she was still visible from the breakfast room's window.

"Who's CeeCee?" Evelyn asked once Samantha was out of ear-shot.

"Her imaginary friend." Emily took a seat next to Evelyn at the table. "I only hope that Samantha doesn't keep CeeCee for as long as you kept..."

"What do you mean?" Evelyn's brows furrowed. "I don't remember having an imaginary friend." When Evelyn saw Rachel visibly stiffen, her face fell when she realized the touchy subject she brought up. "Oh..." she murmured. "Was it when I was sick?"

Rachel smiled weakly and placed a hand over Evelyn's. "It's fine that you don't remember, Evie. I hardly remember anything from our childhood either!"

Evelyn's nose scrunched. "But I don't remember anything from before... the place."

Rachel quickly diverted the attention to something more casual. "What do you have planned for today?"

Evelyn didn't know whether or not she was glad about the change of subject. She had always been curious about her past. She didn't remember anything from before she was thirteen, and even then she didn't exactly want to remember her time at... the place. The staff practically ignored her existence, or were scared to go anywhere her, and the other patients were nuts. Evelyn did everything she could to get out of... the place... as fast as she could to go home, but when she did get home, no one wanted to talk about what happened. Ever.

"Evie?" Rachel called out with concern.

"Huh? Oh." Evelyn shrugged. "I don't know what I'm going to do. What do people normally do when they're on vacation?"

"You could go to the beach?" Rachel input. "Or the museum ... or ... and I'm just pulling this out from the top of my head ... you could come and help me at work?" Rachel smiled sheepishly.

Evelyn raised a brow in response.

"Yes, you say? Well, only if you really want to." Rachel made up Evelyn's mind for her. "'kay, so tomorrow night I got signed to cater a HUGE charity event, and I'm a tad low on hands; at least four people called in sick. I need you to help me serve Hors d'oeuvres."

"Is that the reason why you wanted me to come here for my vacation?" Evelyn pursed her lips. She wasn't mad, but she didn't exactly imagine spending her break working for someone else.

It was Rachel's turn to raise a brow. "Like you had anywhere else to go," she retorted.

"Fair enough." Evelyn pouted. Rachel had her there.

"I'll get you a uniform in your size." Rachel winked and then lifted Danny out from his high-chair. "Come on, Danny, it's time to get ready for Tumble Tots. Evie, can you watch Samantha while I clean him up?"

"Sure, no problem."

Once Rachel was out of view, Evelyn sneaked a glance at Samantha, who was still playing outside, and then she tip-toed to the wall phone. Taking out the card Tony gave her, Evelyn dialed the number.

"This is Virginia Potts."

Evelyn was thrown off-guard. "Uh... is Tony there?" Evelyn was cautious to ask.

"Who may I ask is calling?" the woman, Virginia, crisply asked.

"I'm sorry, I think I have the wrong number." Evelyn swiftly hung up the phone. "Oh my God, he's married — of course," she mumbled to herself. _Married guys are always better at seducing women. Well, there goes my plans. Now how am I going to learn how to be more Black Swan-e?_

"Will you be okay here by yourself for the day?" Rachel re-entered the breakfast room with a newly cleaned Danny.

"Rachel, I'm not a child. I think I can take care of myself," Evelyn replied.

"Right," Rachel responded, shaking her head. "Well if you want to go somewhere, you can borrow mom's old car. The keys are hanging on the key-rack by the garage door. Samantha! It's time to go!"

"Coming!" Samantha shouted back.

"Bye Evie."

"Bye. Have a good day at work."

"I'll bring your uniform with me when I get home!" Rachel declared, and then with a soft slam of the front door, Evelyn was left alone.

Sighing, Evelyn washed her coffee cup and went back to her room. Picking up the picture of her mom, she bit her inner-cheek. Her mother's name was Barbra Addams, and she died just after Evelyn moved to New York after switching dancing companies; she transferred from the one in San Francisco. She was Evelyn's inspiration to continue dancing for as long as possible because Barbra danced well into her 40s before she was forced to retire because of Evelyn's ... situation. Barbra taught both Rachel and Evelyn the arts of entertainment and performance: singing, dancing, and acting—Barbra did it all, and was amazing at it. Everyone knew who Barbra Addams was, and Evelyn wanted to go down in history just like her mother.

Evelyn blew air out of her mouth, boredom taking over. She set the picture down and looked over at her CD collection of classical music that she brought along with her. She knew that she promised Marcus she would take a break from dancing, but dancing was the only thing that Evelyn knew how to do.

Evelyn didn't start to perform on stage until she got out of... the place, and she didn't remember if she knew how to dance before then. All she remembered was waking up one morning and being surrounded by white. A woman who was, also, dressed in white came into the room hesitantly to gave Evelyn food. After that, Evelyn never left the room all day, except for one hour when she was let outside for some fresh air and 'exercise' ... alone.

That pattern lasted for a month before Evelyn was released to a mother she didn't remember. And when Barbra saw Evelyn, she was so happy. And after a tearful reunion, she was then introduced to a sister she couldn't remember either.

Evelyn had thought that Barbra would try to teach her everything about her past all over again, but, she didn't. Instead Barbra told Evelyn that she was better off not knowing her past before... the place. Still, what could had Evelyn done that she was better off not knowing about? Why did she forget? Was it that bad?

"Well... I can't _not_ practice. I'll stiffen up," Evelyn muttered to herself, trying to rationalize why she was rushing to change into her leotard and ballet shoes.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Tony doesn't know about Rachel's command about Evelyn having no association with him, and he tries to cope with a woman not returning his advances. As for Evelyn, she asks for Tony's help on a subject he is basically a pro on.

(_I think I am just going to repost The Game Changer, not the sequel since that didn't get much feedback. Since the original ending left on a cliffhanger to open up the sequel, I may change that, too. Unless you guys want me to repost the sequel and add a few tweaks, but I'll leave that for when we reach the end of this story, again. I do expect flames because I deleted this without warning, but it won't dishearten me from reposting this. I love Evie, I think she is the best OC I've ever created._

_Here are a few changes that I think are worth noting for you guys:_

_1) I changed Emily's name to Rachel._

_2) I'm re-editing so that this is in past tense and not present tense._

_To any new readers, welcome! Evelyn was inspired by Jessica Day, portrayed by Zooey Deschanel, from the show New Girl._)

_**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Iron Man, Marvel does (and they did the brilliant choice of casting Robert Downey Jr as Tony). This will be the only time I mention the disclaimer.


	2. Lord of the Ring References

**Chapter Two: _Lord of the Ring References _**

* * *

><p>He couldn't believe it; he just could not believe it — she didn't call. How could she NOT call <span>him<span>? Women always called him. Always.

Tony tore his gaze away from the time on his alarm clock in his bedroom, deciding to take a shower before starting his normal morning routine (over three hours late may he add). Once done, he ventured downstairs and strolled right into Pepper's home office without bothering to knock. (It was his house.)

"Hey. Any calls?" he inquired, trying to come off as nonchalant.

"For the last time, no," Pepper replied, irritable. She was sitting behind her desk, typing away on her desk top. "I don't even know why you keep that stupid line open to begin with."

"Well, I'm not going to give strange women my actual phone number," Tony chortled, plopping down on a plush, leather seat in front of Pepper's desk.

Pepper gave Tony a look that made him shift uncomfortably in his seat. Eventually she sighed.

"I'm just tired of getting yelled at and hung up on by the women you sleep with. They call, I answer; they ask for you, I look through "the list" and tell them whether you're available or not if they're on the "avoid" column," said Pepper in exasperation. "I did not see being some sort of pimp on the job description when you hired me."

"You're right." Tony nodded assertively. "How about a raise?"

Shaking her head, Pepper's lips parted to speak, but the ringing of "the line" caused her to close her mouth and answer the phone. "This is Virginia Potts ... Who may I ask is calling ... Hello? Hello?" She grunted, unladylike, and hung up the phone. "And that is why I deserve my new raise."

"Who was it?" asked Tony, scooting to the edge of his seat in anticipation. Could it had been Evie?

"She hung up before she told me a name. Why are you suddenly interested in..." a smile stretched across Pepper's face. "Who did you meet? What's her name?"

"No one important." He waved her off, putting back on his mask of indifference. "I think I'm going to go for a quick drive," he suddenly announced a task, which was highly out of character for him (because he did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, regardless of telling Pepper before hand).

"Hold it," Pepper called out, stopping Tony before he left her office. "Before you go and ignore your schedule that took me hours to perfect, there is at least one thing that you cannot ignore: the charity event. It's tomorrow night, and they want to know if you'll be attending so they can reserve a seat."

"Depends. What are they serving?"

"Oh!" Pepper beamed at the subject, uprising Tony. "They got Rachel Addams to cater. I heard that her food tastes even better when she makes it. I've always wanted to taste some of her recipes but..."

"Did you say Rachel _Addams_?" Tony quickly faced Pepper who jumped at his sharp movement. It couldn't be a coincidence that this Rachel Addams shared the same surname as Evie.

"Yeah... oh no, she's not the woman you're waiting to hear from is she? Tony, she's married!" Pepper chastised.

"No, it's not her," Tony replied. "It's her older, very much available, sister Evie. We are talking about Rachel Blake, right?" He asked aloud to clarify.

Pepper nodded. "I think she kept her surname as Addams for her cookbooks only. I didn't know she had a sister though."

"Yeah, I picked her up on the way back from Vegas," said Tony.

"Are you telling me that you picked up a _hitch-hiker_?" Pepper's jaw slacked. "That could have been dangerous! What were you thinking?"

"That she's a dancer." Tony grinned mischievously.

Pepper gaped at him, appalled, and slowly shook her head. "I don't know why I bother to try and understand ... _that_ ..." she muttered underneath her breath, gesturing to his overall appearance.

"Yeah, me neither," Tony quipped, not offended. "I'm going for that drive now."

Tony was half-way out of Pepper's office when her voice stopped him dead in his tracks. "You're not going to start stalking this girl are you?"

There was a long pause before he answered. "No."

**[·]**

Slowing to a halt, Tony could spot the white suburban home of the Addams family a few houses away. He parked where he knew for sure that Evie or any other member in her family couldn't spot him.

Okay, so he lied to Pepper, he went to Evie's sister's house. But he wasn't stalking the woman! Tony Stark did not stalk women — they stalked him. He just had to check and see if Evie was still at her sister's. If not, then it would explain why she didn't call him. Normally, whenever he gave out "his" number, the women called within minutes... it had been nearly 24 hours - an entire day, and Evie hadn't called.

That was a record which should had been put in Guinness World Records.

The house appeared to be empty. There were no cars parked in the driveway, but then again, there was still the possibility that they were parked in the garage.

Tony stayed parked outside Evie's sister's house for about an hour, when he realizes that he was parked outside Evie's sister's house. _What am I doing? I'm not the one that's suppose to do the waiting – she is!_

The burst of realization tempted Tony to march right up to the front door, knock, and demand an explanation. His hand was right on the car door handle, about to open it, when he saw movement from the corner of his eye. He panicked, quickly turned on his car and speed off.

**[·]**

The base of the music thudded through Tony's body, oddly calming him. Usually one would think that loud music was distracting, but for Tony, if anything, the loud music helped him think. In this case, the loud base was keeping him focused on cleaning one of his car's engines and off of the first woman to have never called him back.

He had been in his workshop as soon as he got home from the embarrassing mistake of visiting the Addams residence.

The music turned down, and Tony went rigid when Pepper quizzically asked. "Were you just listening to Lady Gaga?"

Okay, so Tony's mind wasn't _fully_ off of Evie.

"Should you be telling me something?" Pepper wondered aloud, tone thick with concern.

Tony pondered his options. Deciding on one, he spun around in his stool. "You're a women, right?"

Pepper quirked a brow. "Gee, what gave that away?"

He ignored her sarcasm and continued on with his question, "Let's just say, hypothetically, that we've never met before, and you also have no clue who I am ... Would you call me if I gave you my number?"

The redhead's freckled face visibly reddened. "I... uh... I don't know if that's an appropriate question to ask me," she stammered. "But since you're asking "hypothetically"... well... I don't know. I DO know you; too much actually."

"So... definitely yes?"

Pepper loudly exhaled and semi-slouched her back. She pursed her lips, and when Tony smiled, she smiled too. "You are funny, charming, and deep, deep, deep down – are genuinely kind. So how dare this woman not call you so that you two can have cheep, meaningless sex. Well, for you it would be cheap, meaningless sex."

"Exactly! Is that too much to ask for?" Tony threw his hands up in the air.

Pepper shook her head. "Is that the answer you wanted?"

"Yes." Tony nodded curtly. "She's obviously a lesbian."

"So because she didn't call you, she's a lesbian?" Pepper drawled, with a raised brow.

"What other reason could there be?"

Pepper responded in a dull tone, "None what-so-ever."

Tony grinned and refaced the engine he was cleaning. "So, go ahead and start badgering me," he uttered. Even with his back facing his PA, Tony could feel Pepper's stern gaze drilling a hold in the back of his head.

"I don't badger," she scoffed. "You pay me a ridiculous amount of money to be your personal assistant, and be your personal assistant I shall." There was a distinct clicking of a pen. "I've already rescheduled your nine and ten o'clock appointments since you magically decided that you don't have any responsibilities; they are moved to next week..."

"Get to the good stuff," Tony interrupted.

Pepper sighed. "When I called to verify your attendance for the charity event, they asked if you would like to reserve another seat, possibly for a date."

"Yes," Tony answered. "And take the rest of the day off to shop for something to wear. Make it expensive, like silk - I like silk; use my card." Tony was met with dead silence.

He spun back around on his stool, toward Pepper; she was gawking at him. "I thought you said that you've always wanted to taste Rachel's cooking?"

"I-I do... Thank you, Mr. Stark." A wide, excited smile stretched across Pepper's face.

"You're welcome, Miss Potts," Tony replied, the corner of his lip rising.

Now Evie was off of his mind.

**[·]**

After a few "mandatory" meetings with the Board of Directors which Pepper made him attend, Tony was officially off of the hook for anything dealing with business for the next few days. (Weeks if he could distract Pepper long enough.) It was not like Tony didn't care about his company — because he did — he just never liked the boring part of being the CEO of Stark Industries: the long, boring meetings and... no, it was only the meetings.

Tonight, Tony could let loose and have fun. Although, first he had to go to some charity event; he forgot for what cause, but he donated money anyway. Hopefully it wouldn't be too bad, and yesterday Pepper seemed really excited about the cater, so at least Tony would have a good meal.

While lacing his tie, Tony's thoughts briefly drifted to Evie, but he brushed her off. The only reason he was thinking about her was because she was the first woman to have never called him. He would get over it and her eventually. Like tonight perhaps. Maybe he would seek out some company for the evening.

Checking the time on his Rolex, Tony noted that he and Pepper needed to leave soon in order to make it to the event on time. A knock on his door caused him to glance at the reflection on his mirror. He froze. Tony swallowed thickly, his loose tie suddenly feeling too tight.

She was breath taking: red hair delicately curled, falling gently around her shoulders, down to the subtle curves of her breast; the lavender gown gleamed underneath the bedroom lights — silk like he asked — and it hugged his PA's frame perfectly.

"Need help with that?"

Tony blinked out of his inappropriate thoughts and turned around to face Pepper. He forgot that he was still fastening up his tie. Without waiting for a response, Pepper walked up to Tony and gently pushed his hands away from the tie's knot. She expertly looped the tie, softly patting it once she was done.

"You ready to go? Happy is waiting with the car," she said.

"Happy's driving?" Tony quickly changed moods from anxious to bewilderment. "I thought that I would drive?"

"Well, I don't exactly want to squeeze into one of your sports car – not in this dress at least," she replied with a light chuckle.

"And a nice dress it is." Tony smirked and shifted his gaze down to Pepper's beautiful gown.

Pepper cleared her throat. "Come on, we need to leave now or else we'll be late."

Once on the way to the event, Tony was looking out of his window when Pepper broke the silence. "Thank you for inviting me, Tony. You heard me say that I would love to taste Rachel Addams' food, and you are giving me that chance when you could have brought someone else with you. And people say you don't listen," she jested.

"You do too much for me, so if there is a way to repay you – I do what I can."

When Tony saw the gentle curve of his PA's lips as she smiled at him, he smiled back.

Pepper really did do too much for him. Things that a normal assistant would had quit the job before doing (or seeing). Tony owed Pepper, and if taking her to a charity event to taste a cook's food helped convince her to stay on his payroll – then so be it. However, when Happy dropped Tony and Pepper off in front of the red-carpet, all thoughts of his beautiful assistant quickly faded away when he saw the smiling face of a certain blue-eyed pixie once he and Pepper got past the paparazzi, inside of the building.

Some of the guests that were already inside flooded towards Tony, trying to strike up a conversation (most of them being women) but Tony did something that caused those around him to stop talking and instead changed to low chattering questioning his odd behavior. He ignored the dozens of beautiful women trying to flirt with him, something that Tony Stark had never done before, and he headed towards a _caterer_. Not a model. Not an actress. Not an heiress. A _caterer_.

**[Evelyn]**

"Are you eating the Hors d'oeuvres?"

Evelyn's back stiffened.

"...Mo," she answered, mouth full with food. She quickly swallowed and turned towards another caterer who caught her eating the food meant for the "important" guests. "What?" Evelyn defended herself, chin raised high. "No one else is eating them, they're shrimp balls."

"They're not really shrimp balls," the caterer hissed.

Evelyn blinked and looked down at the round balls on her silver platter. "Really? Ooh, right. I knew that."

The caterer scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Of course you..." the woman's sarcastic comment trailed off when she gaped at something behind Evelyn.

Evelyn followed the caterer's gaze, peering over her shoulder. Standing behind her was the kind man who gave her a ride to Malibu when her car broke down a few miles outside of Vegas. The one person that Evelyn was not allowed to speak to according to Rachel. Ever.

"Oh, Tony, hi," Evelyn casually greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"Are you nuts?" the carter muttered harshly from behind Evelyn. "You can't talk to Mr. Stark like that!"

"Wha...? Why is everyone getting mad at me about you?" Evelyn asked Tony, genuinely confused.

"Maybe it's because you never called me?" Tony raised a brow, sauntering closer.

"Oh, well, about that. You see... Rachel said that I'm not allowed to have anything to do with you while I'm here on vacation."

"You're on vacation?" His eyes drifted down to her caterer uniform.

Evelyn also looked down at her uniform, and then back at Tony. "Yes I am," she stated, chin raised high. "Rachel just needed a little extra help, and I am the best big sister in the world you know. I have a coffee mug that says so."

Tony snickered. "Really?"

"It was a birthday present for my fifteenth birthday," Evelyn proudly declared.

"Evelyn," the carter who was surprisingly still standing behind Evelyn harshly spat her name. "You're here to serve Hors d'oeuvres, nothing fraternize with the guests. I'm going to tell Mrs. Blake."

"She seems... nice," Tony remarked.

Evelyn shrugged and held out her platter; Rachel wouldn't fire her. "Would you like to try some shrimp balls, kind sir?" she asked with an overly posh British accent. Tony's eyes glinted with amusement. "They are not meant to be confused with shrimp genitalia," she made sure to add.

"When you put it that way..." Tony popped a shrimp ball into his mouth. "Oh, wow, that's good."

"Right?" Evelyn beamed. "Rachel has always been the cook in the family. I could never make up recipes right off the bat."

Tony swallowed his food and wiped his mouth with the napkin Evelyn offered. "So why does your sister say that you aren't allowed to have anything to do with me?"

"She told me about your reputation with women. How you seduce them into sleeping with you and then dump them like yesterdays garbage the next morning," Evelyn bluntly replied. "At first I didn't believe her since I know how rumors are sometimes just rumors, but when I tried to call you the other day – your wife answered."

"Whoa, whoa – my _wife_ answered?" Tony choked on air. "I don't have a wife."

Evelyn's brows furrowed. "But a women answered the..."

"Pepper? She's my personal assistant."

"Ohh..." Evelyn nodded, lips forming the shape of an 'o'.

"I'm perfectly single." Tony winked.

A warm, fuzzy feeling spread throughout Evelyn's stomach and chest, and she stupidly grinned. He was doing it again. Damn, he was good at this sort of thing; maybe now that she knew he wasn't not really married she could ask him to teach her the art of seduction, how to become more Black Swan-e.

"You know what. Come on."

"What?"

Tony took the silver platter from Evelyn's hands and discarded it on the nearest table. Taking her hand, he didn't even bother to hesitate to drag her out of the charity event, and he casually ignored the many stares.

**[·]**

"Rachel is totally going to kill you for abducting me from my duties of serving Hors d'oeuvres," Evelyn remarked, sipping the pink wine Tony ordered for her. She kept twisting her bottom back and forth on the spin-able bar stool she was sitting on, nerves putting her in need of constant motion.

After "relieving" her of her duties, Tony braved the paparazzi with ease while Evelyn developed temporary blindness from the many flashing lights, he then briefly introduced her to a man named Harold "Happy" Hogan, his Head of Security and personal driver, when he shoved her in the backseat of a car while she was furiously rubbing her eyes in hopes of regaining sight; he took Evelyn to his society club, which to her seemed more like a man-cave. Older gentlemen were in expensive suits, sitting scattered around in large, overstuffed leather chairs, smoking equally as expensive cigars; they were either talking about business or indulging upon the extremely younger women draped across their laps. Tony and Evelyn took refuge at the corner edge of the bar, slightly hidden behind big potted plants.

"You could have stopped me," Tony replied, gulping down the remaining amber liquid of scotch from his glass.

"Hmm, true," Evelyn hummed. "But when I tell her my version of the story – I tried, but you overpowered little ol' me," she feigned a dramatic sigh, placing the back of her hand over her forehead.

Tony chuckled. "Okay," he nodded, lifting his empty glass in the view of the bartender, "I see how it is: play the damsel in distress card."

"Hey." Evelyn spun around to face Tony, but she pushed herself too hard and ended up spinning around in a full 360 degree circle on the bar stool. "Can I ask you a question?" she asked once she came back around.

As the bartender refilled Tony's drink, Tony nodded. "_You _can ask me anything."

"How many women on average do you convince to sleep with you a week?" she benignly inquired, listening intently for the answer. Tony choked, mid-drink, and began coughing hoarsely. "Is it a lot? Like, are you good at seducing women or are you, like, amazing at it? Because there is a difference," she continued, not realizing that her question greatly affected him.

Clearing his throat Tony asked while adjusting his tie. "Why do you ask?"

"Well from what I could gather from Google, you are supposedly some kind of... _doing it _God," Evelyn strained to say. Tony raised a brow at her hesitant pause. Evelyn had never been able to verbally say the word 'Sex', it made her feel awkward. "And all women want to be with you because you're suave and incredibly charming and, of course, rich... but how do you do it? How do you seduce people?" By now Evelyn was staring intensely in her wine glass, at the pink tinted liquid.

How did one go about and ask someone else for help in seducing people? Because to Evelyn, judging by Tony's silence, she just ruined her one chance at learning how to become more Black Swan-e. Summing up some courage, she tore her gaze away from her pink wine, up at Tony. He looked to be in deep thought, and she fumbled to explain herself.

"It's just that... I need help in becoming Black Swan-e. My director says that I'm the perfect White Swan, but I'm no Black Swan. That I'm not deceiving and seductive enough." Evelyn was babbling. "And _you_ are from what I've heard. You just have this way with people that attracts all their attention to you, and I want that quality, too. If you can teach me, that means that I can finally get the lead role in a major production..."

"Wait, wait," Tony interrupted, quieting Evelyn. He stared at her as if she sprouted a third eye. "You want me to teach you how to become more _Black Swan-e_? Did I say that right?"

"Yes." she eagerly nodded.

Tony continued to stare at Evelyn without so much as batting an eyelash. He downed his entire drink again and waved for another. "And Black Swan-e means...?" he trailed off, rolling his hand towards Evelyn, gesturing to her that he wanted her to further explain.

"Oh." Evelyn perked in her stool. "To be more seductive, deceiving and manipulative; the complete opposite of the more innocent, caring and loving White Swan."

"And you're talking about the story _Swan Lake_?" he asked with a raised brow.

"Mhm." she nodded.

"Dancers are doing stories now?" Tony questioned aloud, bewildered. "I never thought that you had to play roles."

Now it was Evelyn's turn to be confused. "What do you mean?" Without a story-line, ballet dancing would be completely useless. Beautiful; but useless.

"Nothing bad... just... I never thought that exotic dancers had roles to play. Sure, I've seen the costumes, but, they never stay on long enough for..."

"You think that I'm a stripper?" Evelyn highly shrieked, voice squeaking. She clamped her mouth shut, sucking her lips inside of her mouth, embarrassed by her outburst. Leaning in closer to Tony, she whispered, "I am not a stripper. I'm a ballet dancer."

Evelyn could have sworn that she saw disappointment briefly flash across Tony's face, but then he visibly brightened. "Ballet, huh?" he questioned mischievously. "That must mean that you're _very_ flexible." A charming, lopsided grin amplified his already handsome features.

Evelyn swooned.

"See!" she exclaimed, pointing at Tony. "I want to learn how to do that. You just made me swoon – right there. Please, you have to teach me."

Tony's face twisted in puzzlement. "You really want to learn how to seduce people?"

"Yes," Evelyn affirmed. "If I learn how to seduce people then I can ace my audition, become the Swan Princess, and then seduce the audience – thus convincing Marcus that I AM Black Swan material." Evelyn nodded with fierce determination. "I think that it was fate that broke down my rental car just out of Vegas so that I could meet you and become your prodigy."

"My prodigy?" Tony mimicked, slowly.

"Oh... did I just freak you out?" Evelyn asked, deflated. "Oh great, now you must think that I'm one of those stupid, crazy, obsessed women."

"I've dated much worse," Tony replied, casually smiling which soothed Evelyn. "Hmm, no one really appreciated my womanizing before. They wanted me to stop, but never teach."

"It's an art form really," Evelyn remarked, smiling.

A wolfish grin curved Tony's mouth. "You want to learn how to become more Black Swan-e? Sure. I can teach you that, no problem. It'd be fun. I can show you how to seduce, charm, and capture anyone's attention. I'd be, like, your guide."

Evelyn bounced, excited, in her seat. "Like Gandalf, thorough Middle-Earth?"

A frown tugged at Tony's mouth, and he regarded Evelyn with a raised brow. "Probably not like... okay... first off let's take the Lord of the Ring references and put them in a deep, dark cave where no one's going to find them."

"Except Sméagol," Evelyn found herself replying. "He lives in a cave."

Again, Tony shook his head. "See, I don't think the Black Swan would know about that. Lets just keep Sméagol and Gandalf and the rest of the Fellowship between us and the White Swan."

Evelyn blinked, jaw slack (with awe). "You know about Lord of the Rings?"

Tony blanched. "I...uh...may have glanced at the movies," he hastily mumbled, clearing his throat.

Evelyn didn't want to voice her doubt, he was obviously lying. But he agreed to help her, so she would keep her mouth shut for as long as he wanted her to. "So when do we start?" she asked, to change the subject.

"Right now," Tony said, looking relieved. "Pick me up."

Evelyn's brows furrowed. "Well... okay, if you say so." She hopped off her bar stool and outstretched her arms. "But I have the upper-body strength of a tooth pick."

"I don't mean literally." Tony laughed, gently pushing Evelyn's arms down and back to her sides. "Here's the scenario: You walk into a bar, see a man that you're attracted to — i.e. me — and you have to convince me to go home with you rather than another other attractive women."

"All right." Evelyn nodded, imagining the scenario. "I think that I can do that."

"Aaand – go," Tony directed.

Evelyn snapped into action, taking a few steps away from Tony. She breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, straightening out her clothes. _I can do this. Mom taught me to be an actress, too._ Spinning on the balls of her feet, refacing Tony, she 'seductively' walked up to him with one hand on her hip, and the other poised at her side, finger tips pointing straight out.

"Stop," said Tony before Evelyn even reached him. His eyes scanned her current stance, which she held, from head to toe. "What are you doing?" He tried to force down a smile.

"I'm doing the sexy walk," Evelyn answered. "I've seen beauty pageant contestants do it for the judges on TV."

"Yeah... no." he snickered. "Try again."

Evelyn huffed. "Fine." She walked a few feet away from Tony, re-breathed, preparing herself again and then headed back; this time she walked normally. Amusement was clearly written on Tony's face, but Evelyn did not break her focus. Once she was close enough to him, she tried to play it cool. She firmly placed her hands on her hips and leaned her back against the edge of the bar. "Hey there, sailor."

"S-sailor?" Tony sputtered, barely containing the laughs slipping through his tightly wound lips.

"Yeah." Evelyn pushed her glasses further up the bridge of her nose. "The bars some of the other girls drag me to back home only have sailors."

"Ah," said Tony. "Well, here's your first tip: Not all men in bars are sailors."

"All right, my first tip!" Evelyn bounced up and down on her feet, clapping joyfully.

Tony smiled. "See, now that is attractive." He pointed out. "Cute and adorable; traits men would want to see in a woman."

"But I already know that I'm cute and adorable," Evelyn whined, throwing her head back in exasperation. "That's the whole point in having you teach me NOT to be just cute and adorable, but hot and sexy like the Black Swan."

Again, Tony inspected Evelyn from head to toe with scrutiny. He finished his last drink and smoothly slid off his bar stool. "Come on, I've got and idea." He placed his palm on the small of Evelyn's back, and gently lead her out of the society club. Fishing out his cell phone from the inner-breast pocket of his blazer, he called someone. "Hey, Happy, I need you to come back and pick me up from the society club and take me home... Pepper's still at the charity event? Well I'm sure that she won't miss you for the next twenty minutes. I just need to get a car."

"Does this mean that I passed my first lesson?" Evelyn asked after Tony ended his call, hearing that he wanted to go to his home.

"No," Tony bluntly replied. "I just need one of my cars to take _you_ home."

"Just to let you know, I'm not sleeping with you," Evelyn responded, but when Tony flashed her an attractive grin, even _she_ began to doubt herself, feeling like putty in his hands.

"You said that you don't want to be cute and adorable anymore, right? Well, right now, in that uniform and with those glasses, you look cute and adorable. So before we retry the first lesson again, we need to change your look," he explained. "I need to see your closet."

"Oh." Evelyn nodded in agreement. "Okay, a make-over. That sounds cool."

Soon, a black, shiny — very expensive — looking car pulled up into the curve of the driveway. Was this the same car that Tony shoved her into? There was so many flashing lights that she didn't get a good look at it, or the driver for that matter. A stocky, well built man in a suit emerged from the driver's seat, and he nodded to Tony and Evelyn. "Mr. Stark... Miss Addams," he politely greeted while opening the back door.

"Hello again." Evelyn waved. "Wow. What kind of car is this?" she asked, sliding into the back seat of the sleek vehicle.

"It's a Rolls Royce," Tony answered, sliding in after Evelyn.

Evelyn didn't respond, too busy running her hands along the cool, beige leather. She had never been in a car like this Rolls Royce before, and she wanted to savor it. Before long (too soon in Evelyn's opinion) they arrived at a modern style home that was perched on top of a mountain side, over-looking the ocean.

"Oh my God." Evelyn pressed her face against the window, no longer in awe by Tony's Rolls Royce. "Your house is amazing."

"I'll give you a tour sometime," said Tony. "But first, lets focus on your new look."

The view of the house was hidden when they drove around the mountain side and turned inside of a curved tunnel. They slowed to a stop in front of a garage door made entirely of glass. "Thanks, Happy. You can go back to Pepper."

"Yes, sir."

Evelyn followed Tony out of the car. The garage door split open down the center, and her jaw slacked. At first, the inside of the garage was dim to dark, but florescent lights turned on, revealing not only one but _two separate_ rows of cars. A round stainless steel desk sat at the ends of the rows, and the walls were lined with shelves filled with various tools, most of which Evelyn had never seen before. Beyond the desk the rest of the garage was pitch black. Maybe the floor had those light censer things built in that turn the lights on when you walk on them? Evelyn saw a demonstration of the lights at the mall once. _If the garage looks like this, imagine what the rest of the house looks like,_ she wondered to herself.

"Evie," Tony called. He was standing by the same silver car that he was in when he picked her up on the outskirts of Las Vegas. It must be his favorite car to use.

**[·]**

"Hi, Richard." Evelyn casually waved to Richard.

He stared, open mouthed, as she and Tony breezed into the house. Tony sure knew how to make himself feel at home with ease.

"If you need me, Tony and I will be in my room," she said.

"I... uh... okay," Richard stammered. "Does Rachel...?"

"Nope." Evelyn interrupted, leading Tony to her room. She closed the door behind them. "Well, the closet is over there." She pointed to the closet on the other side of the room.

"All right," Tony clapped his hands together and rubbed them. "Lets see what you've got."

"What happens when you find me a sexy outfit?" Evelyn plopped herself down on the edge of the bed, watching Tony rummage through the guest room closet containing her clothes.

"You put it on and we give lesson number one another go," said Tony. He took out a few items of clothing, scanned them for a moment, and then handed them to Evelyn. "Here."

"You want me to try them on?" she guessed.

"No, I want you to throw them out."

"What? Why? What's wrong with them?"

Tony picked out one of the dresses he handed to Evelyn to throw out, it was a red dress with white polka dots. "This looks like something Minnie Mouse would wear," he remarked.

"I like Minnie Mouse," Evelyn murmured with a pout. "Plus this goes with this cute bow I brought." Evelyn dashes over to the make-up desk that sat underneath an oval mirror. She opened the left top drawer and showed Tony the matching red bow with white polka dots.

"Key word: cute," Tony replied. "Let me ask you one question, Evie." Tony lifted the dress into level view with Evelyn's eyes. "Do you think the Black Swan would wear this?"

Evelyn knows that she was defeated. "Well, does the closet have anything Black Swan-e?"

"No," Tony spoke honestly. "Everything is too... bright." He looked at the scattered amount of clothes that were on Evelyn's bed: yellows, pinks, purples and blues.

Evelyn blew air out from between her lips.

"And you're going to need new underwear."

Evelyn went rigid at this statement. "Why would I – are you going through my underwear drawer?" she shrieked, face flushing with embarrassment as Tony held one of her panties in his hands. He was still looking through her bras.

"You cannot be Black Swan-e in white panties with yellow ducks on them," Tony responded. Evelyn pursed her lips, moving her mouth to the side.

"Change of plans," Tony announced, glancing at his watch. "Tomorrow I'm taking you shopping for both clothes and underwear. We'll go bright and early in case it takes all day. How about I pick you up for breakfast?"

"What time?"

"Eight decent enough for you?"

"Sounds good to me." Evelyn nodded.

"Do you have contacts?"

Evelyn's nose scrunched up at the sudden change in subject. "Yes, why?"

"Wear them tomorrow," he commanded. "Now get some sleep, we have a big day in the morning."

"Okay." Evelyn felt like a child by Tony's bossiness, but she walked him out to his car anyway, and then watched him leave. _This is it_, she told herself, a smile spreading across her face. With Tony's help, she would definitely get the lead role in _Swan Lake_.

**[·]**

"Evelyn Marie Addams!"

Evelyn jolted up into a sitting position in bed, startled by the harsh whisper of her name and the distinct slam of her bedroom door. The light turned on and Evelyn sharply inhaled at the bright light, clamping her eyes shut.

"Rachel?" she questioned, groggy, barely identifying the blurriness of her sister. She reached for and put on her glasses that were resting on the nightstand.

"You left right in the middle of the event – and with _Tony Stark_ no less!" Rachel exclaimed, red-faced. "I ask you for help, just this once, and you let me down."

"I'm sorry, Rachel," Evelyn apologized, feeling guilty. Maybe she should had gone back after Tony left? "It's just..."

"No excuses," Rachel snapped. She sighed and shook her head. "I told you not to have anything to do with that scum-bag, and you go and run off with him in the middle of the night! Ah – I'm not done." Rachel held up a finger to Evelyn when Evelyn opened her mouth to defend herself. "You are acting like a complete child, Evie, and if you want to continue to act that way – then I will treat you like one. You're grounded."

"What? Rachel!" Evelyn gawked. "Tony is taking me out tomorrow"

"You're not going anywhere tomorrow. Especially with Stark," Rachel snarled.

Frustrated tears began to form at the corners of Evelyn's eyes. Rachel tenderly touched her cheek.

"Oh, Evie... I just don't want you to get hurt. Tony is bad news."

"But I already told Tony that I'm not going sleep with him," said Evelyn. "He's helping me, Rach."

"Helping you how?"

Evelyn chewed the inside of her cheek. "You know why I'm on this vacation, right?"

"Yeah, Marcus said you needed a break." Rachel shrugged.

"Because I bugged him about not being in the upcoming production of _Swan Lake._ He said that if I take this break he would let me audition for the lead role as the Swan Princess."

"That's great news, Evie!" Rachel beamed.

"It is," Evelyn agreed. "Except he also said that I'm not Black Swan material. And that's why I need to go out with Tony tomorrow; he agreed to teach me how to seduce the audience. I neeeed him, Rach." Evelyn flashed her sister her famous puppy dog pout; it never failed her before because of her unusually large baby-blue eyes.

"Evie..." Rachel showed signs of cracking.

"Pleeease, Rachel." Evelyn hugged her sister's arm. "Un-ground me. This could finally be my big break. My last chance... I'm turning 30 soon."

Ballet dancers hardly ever danced professionally in their 30s, they either got fired or turned into teachers, which the last choice didn't sound so bad. The only older dancers were famous ones, like her mother. Evelyn wanted to dance forever if possible, and landing the role of the Swan Princess would definitely give her the lead she needed to survive just a little longer in the dancing community.

Rachel heavily breathed out through her nose. "Fine... for mom's sake. I'm sure she would have been glad to know that at least one of us is following her footsteps."

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Evelyn squealed in joy, engulfing Rachel in a hug.

"But if he touches you – I'll kill him," Rachel uttered firmly, facial expression completely serious.

Eyes wide, Evelyn could only nod in response to her sister's threat towards Tony. She reminded herself not to tell him about her sister's dislike of him tomorrow, or ever. Evelyn and Tony's arrangement was still fresh, new. Evelyn couldn't afford to have him break all ties with her.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Tony takes Evelyn shopping, and for the first time ever, he's spending time with a girl without the intention of having sex with her.

_Sheepinkgirl: I know, right? I have no clue why I made them both have names beginning with an 'E'. Sorry for the confusion the first time 'round. I'm still iffy about the sequel, but I'll either have a poll or give you an option to either continue as it was or change the ending so that this is a stand alone story. I don't want to give away spoilers, but I'll inform you guys about it later, when it's near the chance to change. Thank you for the review, hun!_

_Persephone: You were a wreck for my littl' 'ol story? *sniffles and dabs eyes* That's one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me. The Game Changer is set to finish, I just need to reedit the chapters, but I'm still doubtful about the sequel. We shall see._

_Sarah: Ah, is it too forward of me to ask if you are new to this story? Welcome! I hope you enjoy it. And thank you for the remark, I really, really love Evie (and as I've said, I think she's the best OC I've ever created). Plus I think she would be the perfect balance for Tony (other than Pepper)._


	3. Get in Loser, We're Going Shopping

**Chapter Three: **_**Get in Loser, We're Going Shopping **_

* * *

><p>Humming <em>Big Love Adagio<em> by the instrumental band Bond, Evelyn danced to the the dresser covered with nothing but a thin white cotton towel. Collecting a bra and panty from the top drawer she tossed them on the bed, but just as she slid open the closet door and removed her towel (letting it fall to the floor), she trailed off with her humming when she remembered what Tony told her the other night: none of her clothes or underwear were Black Swan material. She turned and sluggishly headed to her discarded bra and panty on the bed; lifting them with a slight pout on her lips, she inwardly berated herself when she was staring at the matching pair of white with yellow ducks that Tony used as a reference for her lack of seductive wear.

She knew that she was going out this very day to get some new clothes and underwear, but what was she going to wear for the time being? Should she ask Rachel if she could borrow something from her closet? No, that wouldn't work, Rachel was a size bigger than Evelyn because of her more developed assets. At this thought, Evelyn peered down at her small breasts. She sighed and threw her underwear over her shoulder, not caring where it landed. She had to get at least one thing done before Tony arrived to pick her up in...20 minutes! Wow, how long was she staring at her intimates?

Evelyn rushed to the make-up desk to put on her contacts that Tony ordered her to wear instead of her glasses. She always hated the task of sticking the lens into her eye, it stung. The only reason she had the stupid things was because she didn't want her glasses to slip off her nose and break while in the middle of performing. Her eyes were red and watery and slightly itchy, but the contacts were in.

A chill ran down her spine, and Evelyn realized that she was still naked. And now she was back in the dilemma of finding out what to wear to go shopping for new clothes.

Standing purposely in front of the open closet, Evelyn held her chin in thought, eyes scanning the endless dresses and blouses, which either went with skirts or leggings or tights. Maybe she should invest in buying more pants?

"All right let's... _whoa_."

Evelyn gasped and dived to the floor, hiding behind the bed. Her head peaked up from her hiding spot, her chin propped against the mattress. "Don't you know how to knock?" she squeaked, face flushed.

"Well, yeah." A lopsided grin stretched across Tony's face. "But good thing I didn't today." He let himself in the room, closing the door behind him. "Why are you naked? Not that I'm complaining."

"This is all _your_ fault!" Evelyn pointed an accusing finger at Tony.

Tony's brow curved delicately, a sly, perverted smirk curving his lips.

"Not like that!" she quickly stammered, trying to correct her mistake. "You said that both my clothes and underwear are too bright, and now I don't know what to wear."

"Ah." Tony nodded curtly. He swaggered forward and bent forward to pick up something from the floor; Evelyn balled up, trying to conceal her nakedness. "What's wrong with these?" he asked, lifting the pair of underwear that Evelyn tossed out of frustration.

Evelyn's brows furrowed. "I thought you said that you didn't like the ones with yellow ducks?"

Tony sighed. "Evie, there is nothing wrong with your clothes. I" - he displayed Evelyn's panty's - "would personally love to see you in these. Any man in their right mind would."

"Then why did you say that I need new underwear?"

"Because in order to be sexy, you need to _feel_ sexy," he explained. "When you wear these, do you feel like you're the Black Swan? No," he said, not waiting for her answer. "You feel like the White Swan."

Evelyn nodded in agreement and stared up at Tony, awestruck. "Wow, I never would have thought of it that way."

"And that is why you came to me." He winked. "Now get dressed, we're behind schedule."

Without thinking, Evelyn rose to reach for her underwear still in Tony's possession. She went rigged, arm already outstretched. Tony's attention was directed elsewhere from Evelyn's beet-red face.

"I never figured you for a waxer. Or do you shave?" Tony teased.

Evelyn snatched her underwear from Tony's hands and dashed inside the small closet, sliding the door closed behind her. Tony's chuckle could be heard in the dark, cramp space as Evelyn fumbled to get dressed. After a few '_ouch_'-es and '_sweet_ _bageebus_'-es from knocking into walls, rods, or the door, Evelyn finally emerged from the closet, fully dressed and ready for whatever Tony threw at her. She chose to wear a plain baby-blue sundress (from what she simply tore off from the nearest hanger).

She took a moment to scan what Tony was wearing, and she eyed him with envy. Even dressed in plain he looked ridiculously good-looking. He was wearing nice-fitting jeans, a long-sleeved black shirt with the sleeves rolled up past his elbows, and polished black sneakers.

"Are you all right? Sounded like you were having a difficult time in there," he said with clear amusement evident in his tone.

"I'm fine." Evelyn tried to play it cool, pushing the fact that Tony saw her naked in the back of her mind. She was sure that he saw plenty of women naked before, and most definitely with _way _better figures than hers.

Evelyn quickly brushed her hair up into a pony-tail with her fingers while leading Tony out of the house. Parked along the curb in front of the house was not the sleek, silver car that she had seen Tony use on two separate occasions, instead there was a black four-door Mercedes. Tony opened the passenger door for her, and while she slide in, she asked, "How long do you think we'll be out for?"

"As long as it takes," Tony simply answered, closing Evelyn's door.

"And you don't have any other important things to do today?"

"Well, yeah, I probably do." He carelessly shrugged. "But nothing I'm sure Pepper can't handle."

Evelyn brows crinkled in confusion. "So, basically, you do whatever you want, whenever you want, without much thought on your schedule?"

Tony's only response was a wink and charming grin; he perked after a moment, though. "Oh, right, before I forget. You left this in my car the other day." He handed over Evelyn's on-the-road mix CD, put in a clear case.

"Oh, oops, I'm sorry." Evelyn apologized, taking the CD. She didn't have a purse or anything to put it in so she placed it on her lap, on top of her wallet and cell-phone.

"It's fine," Tony sniffed once, stiffening.

Evelyn detected something odd in his body language. For the first time since they met, he was avoiding eye-contact. A smile slowly went across her face, her eyebrows wiggling.

"You listened to it, didn't you?" she accused.

"I may have listened to a song or two," he mumbled uncomfortably, shifting in his seat. "You know – while it was in the car. The CD player automatically plays when I turn it on."

"_Rrr_ight." Evelyn nodded. "Admit it, you liked it."

"I didn't dislike it," he replied, shrugging.

"S_ooo_, in that case..." Evelyn opened the clear case and put the CD back into the CD player. "Now we have shopping music," she cheered, dancing in her seat when the CD began to play '_Eat You Up_' by the Korean pop artist BoA. "When I first saw you / I knew nothing's like it used to be / Boy, you have got to be the finest thing in history," she sang, playfully pointing at Tony.

He burst out laughing. "Where on Earth do you find these songs?"

"Uh...I think the question you should be asking is how on Earth do you NOT know about these songs?" Evelyn retorted.

Tony chuckled. He shook his head and turned his attention back onto the road.

**[·]**

"I was thinking about dying my hair blonde. Blondes are sexy, right? I think I could pull it off. I mean, Rachel is blonde and she's gorgeous; though she's a natural blonde, unlike me. My Mom was blonde, too..." Evelyn trailed off, wondering why she came out brunette when both her mother and Emily were blonde. Did that mean her biological father was a brunette? Evelyn cleared her head of the father she never knew. She once tried to ask her mother about him, but after Evelyn saw her mother's expression she dropped the subject. Her mother looked...scared, terrified, as if Evelyn's biological father brought nothing but bad memories.

Evelyn noticed that when she stopped talking, Tony didn't seem to notice. He was not listening to a single word she was saying. She placed her fork on her plate and scanned his face. His attention was fully focused on his half-eaten plate of a meat-lovers omelet with hash-browns, and his eyes appeared to be glazed over, deep in thought.

"Tony? Are you okay?" she asked, concerned.

"Hm?" Tony blinked and gazed up at Evelyn.

"Are you okay?" she repeated her question.

He wiped his mouth with a napkin and threw it on his plate. "Yeah, fine. Can we have the check please," he directed to a passing waiter.

"You sure? You've been distracted ever since we ordered," Evelyn pressed.

Tony leaned back against his seat. "It's nothing really. Pepper got mad at me for leaving her behind at the charity event last night. I've never seen her this upset with me before. Usually she just brushes it off. She knows me."

"Well, the best thing to do for a woman who's angry with you is to do something nice for her. Show her that you appreciate her. We're going shopping today, why don't you buy her something nice? I'll even help you pick something out if you want," Evelyn offered.

Tony straightened up in his seat, completely interested in the change of direction the conversation was heading. "What do you think I should get her?" he asked.

"Depends. What would you buy for your ex-girlfriends whenever they were mad at you?" Evelyn inquired.

She was blind-sided by Tony's answer.

"I've never had a girlfriend."

Evelyn's jaw dropped. "You've never – you're kidding, right? I thought you said you've dated before?"

"Yes – I've _dated_ plenty of women. Nothing serious, like with feelings and shit."

"Gee that's so sweet of you to say," Evelyn retorted, tone laced with sarcasm. "But you must have some sort of feelings for your assistant if you're this upset over her being upset with you."

Tony shifted uncomfortably in his seat, breaking eye-contact. The waiter came back with the check, and Tony simply handed over a credit card.

Evelyn laughed with delight at her deduction. "Aw, that's so sweet! Have you told her how you feel?"

"I do not have feelings for Pepper," Tony stated firmly.

Evelyn smiled, doubtful. "Whatever you say. Either way I'll still help you find something to buy for her."

The waiter came back to the table with Tony's credit card, and Tony took it while clearing his throat. "Our first stop is for the lingerie, which will be at the mall."

A smile stayed firmly on Evelyn's lips despite Tony's attempt at changing the subject.

"Have you ever shopped at Victoria's Secret?" he asked.

"I get all my underwear from Wal-mart," Evelyn meekly answered, following Tony out of the restaurant. She subconsciously went to push her glasses up the bridge of her nose but she touched nothing but air. She forgot that she was wearing contacts.

"That...is just sad." Tony's face scrunched at her revelation.

"They come three in a pack!" Evelyn tried to defend herself, sliding into the passenger's seat of the car.

Tony got into the driver's seat and sped off without much concern over the building up traffic. Evelyn jerked back in her seat, tightly clutching the seat-belt across her chest. This was the second time he just sped off, practically pressing on the gas petal with his entire weight.

"Don't you ever go the speed-limit?" Evelyn wondered after calming down her nerves.

Tony simply arched a brow, facial expression telling her that he was too good to follow the speed-limit.

"Okay then," Evelyn muttered. "Have you ever gotten a ticket for speeding?"

He snorted, laughing.

"How about an accident? Have you ever been in one before?" she tried a different angle.

Again, Tony raised a brow, like saying: 'Come on – it's me. Does it look like I've ever been in an accident before?'

Evelyn huffed. Did this guy have _any_ flaws?

**[·]**

"Oh, wow, thank you. Smells wonderful." Evelyn coughed when a woman at the entrance of the lingerie store, Victoria's Secret, sprayed some kind of perfume at her face. Fanning the air in front of her face, Evelyn's jaw slacked at the store dedicated to nothing but woman's intimates. On a mannequin, for all eyes to see, was a transparent lacie pink top with a silk sown in bra, and a barely there string thong.

"Ooh, you should try these on." Tony held into view some red transparent 'cheeky' panty's (as the sign above the station read).

"Those are see-through," Evelyn pointed out. "I might as well wear nothing at all."

"Commando – I never thought about that. Good idea, Evie." He wolfishly grinned.

"Co-commando?" Evelyn blinked. "There's a word for wearing not panties at all?"

The sly smirk remained on Tony's face; he waved the panties in Evelyn's face.

"Give me those," she grumbled, snatching the underwear from his hands.

"Wait, wait, you'll need a bra to go with that," said Tony, cupping his chin as his eyes scanned the store. He strutted over to a nearby station dedicated to various push-up bras and rummaged through the drawers. "What size are you? 32A?" he guessed. Correctly, may Evelyn add.

"How did you know?" asked Evelyn, flabbergasted.

Again, Tony only smirked knowingly towards Evelyn. How did he do that? How could ONE simple quirk of his lips – tell all? Evelyn _had_ to learn!

"Try these on. We'll work off of them after we see the results." Tony pressed a red push-up bra into Evelyn's arms and gently lead her, with his palm pressed against the small of her back, to the dressing rooms.

Evelyn wordlessly entered one of the unoccupied rooms, and shimmied out of her dress. There was a full-length body mirror bolted to one of the walls, and she took a moment to stare at her reflection, at the current bra and panty she was wearing. She got the the ones with the yellow ducks on them because she thought that it was a cute set. She always bought what she thought would look cute on her. Didn't all girls?

She held up the push-up bra in front of her, eying it warily. _Well, here goes nothing._ She plucked a clear strip from a nearby box, meant to be placed on the underwear so you wouldn't soil the material.

Evelyn stripped naked and changed into the nearly non-existent 'cheeky' panty's and the matching push-up bra. _Wow, I'm HUGE!_ Evelyn gawked at the dramatic change with her breasts. She went up at least a cup size.

There were muffled sounds of an argument coming from just beyond the dressing room she was in. Without warning, Tony burst into the changing room and quickly closed the door behind him, locking it.

_I didn't know there was a lock,_ Evelyn gawked. "What are you doing in here?"

"I came to see what you look like," Tony said casually. He scoffed, adding, "Apparently, they don't let men back here."

His eyes roamed Evelyn's half-naked body from head to toe. She tried to cover herself, but Tony swatted her hands away. "Relax, I've already seen you naked," he chortled.

"Is that a tattoo?" He pointed down at Evelyn's hip bone.

Evelyn dropped her chin down to her chest, looking down at her hip and twisted her lower-half so that she can have a better look. The tattoo was small, barely noticeable from behind the see-through panty. The ink was black and was shaped like a pentagram, except the edges were curved and then was concealed in a circle. She nodded. "Yeah. I had that for as long as I can remember," she responded; which was at 13 and forward. She had no clue why she had a tattoo at 13, but like the subject of her father, it was an unspeakable matter in the Addams family.

"I never thought you would be the kind of person to have a tattoo," Tony replied, truthfully. Shockingly, he kneeled down in front of her so that he was eye level with her stomach. He was about to reach forward to touch the tattoo, as if transfixed, when the door opened, revealing one of the store's sales associate.

"What are you two doing in here?" the woman shrieked.

"It's not what it looks like!" Evelyn shouted, utterly embarrassed. "He was just looking at my tattoo!" _Oh God, that sounds like the lamest excuse on the face of the planet._ Evelyn wanted to face-palm herself for stupidly uttering it.

"Now, Evie, there's no need to lie to the woman." Tony rose to his feet, calmly adjusting his clothes.

She gaped at him, mouth unhinged.

The sales associate eyed Evelyn. Barely realizing that she was still in nothing but a bra and panty, Evelyn gasped and hide behind Tony's towering figure. Amusement was clearly written on his face, and Evelyn scowled at him. He was enjoying this!

"Mr. Stark, you are not allowed in the dressing rooms. You must leave," the sales associate ordered.

"Does everyone know you?" Evelyn stared up at Tony in bewilderment.

"Uh... yeah," he stated obviously. "And" - he eyed her - "we'll take it."

When Tony and the sales associate left Evelyn alone, she heavily blew air out of her mouth and leaned against the wall, slouching. She didn't know that it would be so much work learning how to become Black Swan-e. But she was not about to give up on her goal. Her entire dancing career relied on her getting the lead role as the Swan Princess.

Changing back into her own underwear and clothes, Evelyn emerged from the dressing room but didn't see Tony in sight. She thought that he would be waiting for her when she got out. With the underwear in hand, she searched the store and then found Tony with a complimentary black shopping bag with the words VICTORIA'S SECRET in bold pink letters were printed across it. Her face slacked at the sight of him rummaging through drawer after drawer of woman's intimates, tossing into the bag whatever caught his fancy.

"Would you like one of our complementary bags to hold you things, ma'am?" a sales associate came up to Evelyn, smiling politely.

"Uh...no. Looks like he already got one," Evelyn replied, still watching Tony.

"Wait...you're here with Mr. Stark?" the sales associate gawked.

Evelyn took offense to the way the petite girl was staring at her, as if she thought Evelyn was not good enough to even be in Tony's presence, let alone having him buy her thousands of dollars of underwear.

"Hey, Evie, how do you feel about thongs?" Tony called from across the store.

Evelyn's face heated up in embarrassment when all eyes turned to her. "Excuse me," she quickly mumbled to the awestruck sales associate still standing next to her. She rushed over to Tony, snatching the thong from his hand and stuffed them back in a random drawer. "No thongs," she whispered lowly, too embarrassed to speak any louder.

"Why not? What do you have against thongs?"

Evelyn didn't know how to answer since she, well, never tried to wear a thong before. But what woman would even want to wear underwear that was specifically made to go up your bottom, like a permanent wedgie? Evelyn already had enough problems with her leotard going up her bum during practice or while performing – she didn't want to worry about her underwear, too.

"You've never worn one, have you?" he cheekily smiled.

"No," she grunted, staring down at her feet.

Tony took the underwear that she already tried on from her hands and put them in the bag with whatever else he got. "Try it," he said, holding out a baby-blue string thong that oddly matched Evelyn's dress. A little heart made out of fake diamonds was glued to what little cloth there was on the front.

Evelyn nervously took the fabric from Tony's awaiting palm.

"If you don't like it, then we don't have to buy it," he added, most likely noticing her discomfort.

Evelyn took in a deep breath. "For the part," she stated, nodding firmly.

Tony smiled almost fondly. "You really will do anything to get this part, won't you?"

"The fate of my career is based on it," she replied.

"Well then, I will be sure to do everything in my power to help you achieve it. Without cheating of course." He winked.

Evelyn summoned up whatever courage she could muster up and marched back to the dressing rooms with her chin held high, the thong firmly clutched in her fingers.

**[·]**

"How does the underwear feel?"

"Kinda itchy," Evelyn answered, trying to adjust to the thong that she wore out of the store (after buying them, of course).

She knew that Rachel wore thongs, so even though Evelyn didn't really like the feel of them in the dressing room, she had to give them a try and she bought one pair to test them out. Plus, the Black Swan would most definitely wear thongs if she were a real person, right? But Evelyn kept wiggling her butt and was constantly fiddling with the panty from over the material of her dress. It felt like she had a wedgie that she couldn't quite pick; it was in too deep.

"How can women wear these without itching or tugging?" she grunted, subconsciously wiggling her hips.

"I don't know but you need to stop walking like that or else I'm going to pretend that we're not here together," stated Tony.

"I can't help it," Evelyn whiled lowly, but she did try to walk normally, for his sake. He probably never had this kind of problem with the other women he had been with out in public. "And did we really have to buy so many of them?" she complained.

She would never be able to dance in itchy underwear.

Evelyn shuffled the many pink bags from Victoria's Secret that she had in her possession, and she was only carrying half – Tony had the rest. He really went wild with the shopping for Evelyn's intimates, like a kid in a candy shop, he bought nearly everything.

They both were heading back to the car to put everything away – only to go back into the mall to buy clothes. Evelyn wasn't sure that Tony brought a big enough car for all the things he was getting for her. Maybe he should had brought a moving van instead.

"You can never have too many underwear, Evie. The more the better," Tony remarked.

"You could have at least let me pay for half," she replied. "The total was a month's worth of pay!"

"Money is not an issue, Evie, especially in this case. I should go to lingerie stores more often. The employees there were more than willing to service me." He grinned cheekily and popped open the trunk of his Mercedes with a simple push of a button from his car remote; he carelessly tossed in his half of the shopping bags, letting Evelyn to do the same.

"Does every woman you meet flirt with you?" Evelyn asked, noticing that all the women they passed in the mall _literally_ stopped what they were doing to gawk at Tony as if he were some sort of Greek God.

"Pretty much," Tony said without hesitance.

"How does Pepper feel about that?"

Tony visibly tensed at Evelyn's mention of his personal assistant, and it caused Evelyn to smile. HA! He probably thought that she forgot about him confessing his feelings for his assistant.

"I'm beginning to regret ever telling you about what happened between Pepper and I this morning," Tony mumbled.

"Well, too bad, you did." Evelyn beamed and looped her arm around Tony's, patting his bicep. "And right now before we shop for some clothes, we're going to find your assistant the perfect apology gift. But first..." Evelyn trailed off and unhooked her arm from Tony's. "I can't stand this thong."

Unbashfully, Evelyn slid her hands up her dress and pulled down the strings of the thong, stepping out of them. She tossed the thin piece of material into one of the bags and then took out a random pair of underwear, ripping the tag from the material before putting them on.

"Okay, now I'm ready," she sighed with content.

Tony was gawking at her with complete surprise.

Evelyn re-looped her arm with Tony's and guided him back into the mall, her chin held high and mind set with a purpose: To help bring together Tony and his personal assistant, Pepper; it was the least she could do for everything Tony was doing for her. Besides, she always wanted to fix someone up before, instead of it being the other way around where some of the other girls from the company would take pity on her and would try to fix her up with a complete and total stranger that was "totally awesome" and "completely your type".

Did Evelyn even have a type?

"I still have no clue what to get her," confessed Tony after coming out of his stupor.

"We'll start with every girl's best friend: jewelry." Evelyn weaved through the mall, trying to find the jewelry store she spotted before Tony took her to Victoria's Secret.

"Isn't that too big of a statement?" Tony questioned, wary.

"Not if it's just some earrings – oh! – or a bracelet; maybe even a necklace." Evelyn was too excited and tried not to bounce on the tips of her toes as she walked. "Something from the heart, to show her how sorry you feel for upsetting her." When Evelyn spotted the jewelry store, she practically dragged Tony inside.

They were immediately approached by a salesman who was grinning from ear to ear and seemed way too eager to please.

"Welcome, how may I help you?" he asked with a lot of enthusiasm (so much that even Evelyn leaned away from the man).

Evelyn could feel Tony's tense muscles from her hold on him, she tried to calm him down by gently running her hand up and down his arm, lightly dragging her nails along his skin. "We would like to see some of your earrings, bracelets, and necklaces, please," she said for him. "Something simple."

"You've come to the right place, young miss. Our diamond tennis bracelets are legendary!" The salesman flicked his hands downwards. "Follow me. My name is Steve, and I'll be helping you pick out some jewelry today."

Evelyn was about to follow Steve further inside of the jewelry store, but she didn't get far because Tony refused to move an inch. She gazed back at him with concern. He looked white as a sheet, and Evelyn could see the doubt in his eyes.

"Tony?" she softly called.

His eyes flickered to her. "I changed my mind. I can't do this. This is Pepper we're talking about. What if she doesn't... I can't lose her as my assistant."

"You really care about her don't you," Evelyn stated rather than questioned. For some reason, she felt envy bubble deep within her stomach. "Not only personally, but professionally." No one cared about her that much before. _Must be nice._ Especially when the person that cared about you was Tony Stark, and from what Evelyn had learned since being in Malibu- that was a pretty big deal. Women would probably (literally) kill to be in Pepper's shoes.

"She's been my assistant for as long as I can remember. I can't simply replace her," he sighed.

"We don't have to do anything that you don't want to. I won't force you," Evelyn responded.

"I want to, but... alone." Tony's eyes flashed with guilt as he gazed at Evelyn.

"That's fine – in fact – I encourage it." Evelyn smiled, hoping that it would show Tony that he shouldn't feel guilty for not wanting her help. And like a snap of the fingers, Tony's mood changed. His eyes roamed Evelyn's face.

"Blonde you say...?" He brought up the earlier conversation Evelyn was trying to discuss with him over breakfast. He took a strand of her dark-brown hair into his hand. "...I've got an idea," he said, eyes shimmering with an unreadable emotion Evelyn couldn't quite place.

Steve, the sales rep for the jewelry store came back up to Tony and Evelyn, a bright smile on his face. "Okay, I lined up some of our most valuable-"

"Yeah, we changed our minds," Tony interrupted. "Maybe some other time... Steve, right?"

Steven eagerly nodded. "Let me go get you my business card, for when you come back." He darted off, disappearing behind the glass counter and into another room.

Evelyn waited patiently for Steve to come back and leaned over to peer into the counter for something she might like, but before she could get a good look at anything Tony grabbed hold of her hand and dragged her out of the jewelry store.

"Wai.. What about Steve?" she asked benignly, pointing over her shoulder towards the jewelry store.

"Yeah, lets be gone before he sees us," Tony responded, forcing Evelyn to jog with him because he had yet to release his grip on her hand. "Ah, here we are."

"A wig shop?" Evelyn questioned after reading the name of the store.

"Wanna know if you look good as a blonde or not?" he retorted, turning around so that he was facing her while simultaneously walking backwards into the shop.

Evelyn didn't hesitate to follow Tony inside of the store. She browsed the rows upon rows of wigs that were placed on styrofoam heads; the store had every style and color imaginable. She came up to Tony, who was standing in the section dedicated to nothing but blonde wigs, and while he was looking through them Evelyn found herself wondering what she would look like if she had pink hair or red hair or blue hair; she sneaked away from Tony and giddily bounced over to a wig that had caught her eye. It was a short bright pink bob-cut styled wig, and she removed it from its styrofoam head. Pulling out her hair-tie, letting her hair fall free from the pony-tail, she gathered it and tucked her hair into the wig. She jogged over to a mirror, making sure that not a single strand of her natural hair was showing. The long side-swept pink bangs brushed against her eyelashes, tickling her, and caused her to sneeze.

"Bless you."

Stiffening at the sound of Tony's voice, Evelyn lifted her head and saw his reflection on the mirror. He was staring at her with a raised brow. With a guilty pout on her lips, she slowly turned around to face him, hoping that her best puppy-dog face (that had won people over many a time) would work on Tony. She knew that she was here with him for business reasons and that she should probably act professional, but come on, the wig was adorable! How could she resist?

"How do I look?" she smiled innocently, shrugging her shoulders.

"Pink," Tony answered in one word, stuffing his hands in his jean pockets.

"Good... that was the look I was looking for," she replied non-too convincingly, firmly placing her hands on her hips.

He chuckled. "Here, try this on. It's the only one I could find that looks even remotely natural." He held out a long golden blonde wig that looked like it was just yanked off Hanna Montana's head.

Evelyn removed the pink wig, turning around to put it properly back on the styrofoam head and fixed it so that it looked like she never touched it. She took the blonde wig from Tony, wrapped her hair up and tucked it underneath the netted cap.

Staring at her reflection, she adjusted the wig so that it looked at least semi-natural, and then turned back around to ask Tony for his opinion. But she was shocked by what she saw.

"Oh my God," she chortled, covering her mouth with her hand, desperately trying to hold in a laugh.

"How do I look?" Tony asked, trying to brush aside some long brown strands of fake hair, but he failed miserably and only succeeded in tangling it further. "How can you women stand to have all this hair?" He tried to untangle his fingers from the hair, spitting because a few strands somehow gone into his mouth.

Giggling, Evelyn helped Tony fix the wig so that it was properly on.

"You look... so good," she lied through her teeth, biting her bottom lip. "You should think about growing it out now."

"Think so?" Tony grinned.

No longer able to contain herself, Evelyn burst out laughing. "Noooho-ho-ho," she managed to say between her laughter, shaking her head and holding her stomach. "You lo-look ridiculous. Ha-ha-ha-HA!" She had never laughed so much in her entire life. "Wait, wait, I have to get a picture of this," she said, preparing the camera on her cell-phone. "Say Cheese," she sang.

Tony puckered his lips, posing for the camera. Evelyn took the picture, giggling. She trotted up to him, showing him the picture that she took.

"Wow." He flipped the hair of the wig over his shoulder. "I look hot. I should buy this."

Quieting down her laughter, Evelyn saved the picture on her phone and tucked it underneath her arm with her wallet so that her hands were free for use. When she looked up, she realized how close she was next to Tony in order to show him the picture. They were separated by mere inches. Her cheeks flushed red and she gulped. "So... what do you think?" she asked, just above a whisper, and played with the ends of the blonde wig. "Should I go blonde?"

_His eyes are so... wow. Like a swirl of brown and green. Pretty._

Tony's eyes roamed her face. He took off the blonde wig, letting her natural dark-brown locks tumble down, cascading around her shoulders. "Nah." He shook his head. "You look better with your natural hair."

"...Okay..." Evelyn breathed, heart pounding in her chest. _Why isn't he stepping back? Wait... why is he coming closer?!_ Evelyn panicked, and she parted her lips in an attempt to say something, but no words come out. _He smells so good..._ she noted the closer he got.

"Can I help you guys?"

Evelyn's head snapped back and she took a few steps away from Tony, and he did so, too. Both heads turned to see a brooding looking teenage girl eying the two of them with clear annoyance. Her own hair was the darkest shade of blue that Evelyn had ever seen, matching the color of her lipstick, and she had at least ten piercings on her ears alone.

"Or should I leave you alone so you can go back to making out?" she added, irritated.

"Oh... we... no... we weren't... we were just..." Evelyn handed the girl the blonde wig, deciding to stay quite. She did what Tony did to get away from Steve the Jeweler and reached for Tony's hand, running out of the wig store, dragging him along with her.

"Hey, wait!" the wig girl shouted.

Evelyn stopped running and let go of Tony's hand. "Man, that was close," she sighed in relief, wiping the imaginary sweat from her brow.

"Uh... Evie?" Tony called.

"Hm...? Oh my God." She clamped her hand over her mouth again. She had dragged Tony out of the store while he was still wearing the shoulder length brown wig. She laughed through her fingers.

"Hey!" the wig girl snapped, running up to them. "You can't just..." she yanked the wig off from Tony's head, but when she saw him without the wig on she let the piece of hair fall to the floor. "Holy shit," she cursed. "I'm... I'm sorry. I didn't realize that it was-"

"It's no problem," Tony interrupted. He fished his wallet from his pocket and gave the girl money without bothering to look to see which bill he gave her. "Sorry about that. We'll take the wig."

"Fuck yeah," the girl cheered, shoving the bill into her pocket. "Thank you, Mr. Stark. I'm actually going to apply for an internship at Stark Industries next summer."

"Oh, well in that case, why don't you call my assistant and give her your name and number. You're as good as hired." Tony winked, giving the girl a similar business card that he gave Evelyn, but this one was made of clear plastic.

"What, really?!" The girl beamed, revealing a row of brilliant white teeth. "I can't wait to tell my dad so he can shove it!"

Tony and the girl fist-bumped, and the girl headed back to the store with a skip in her step.

Evelyn had watched the interaction in fascination. Tony looked so natural. He was such a people person. Evelyn had been told that she was a people person too, but in a cute people-can't-NOT-like-her kind of way. Tony was just genuinely likeable.

"What?" Tony asked after seeing Evelyn's awestruck face.

"I'm totally getting that part," she murmured, in awe.

Tony winked. "I know. I'm awesome."

* * *

><p><span><strong>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Evelyn finds something of her mother's that someone went out of their way to hide, and unknowingly sets off a series of unfortunate events.

_Sarah: Eeek! It pleases me that you like Evie, it means I'm doing her right. Wow, specifically Zooey and Robert fics? Man, that must be tough. How is the search going? I would love to read some more fanfics with a Zooey and Robert pairing, pass me some if you find any._


	4. Only In Your Dreams

**Chapter Four:_ Only In Your Dreams_**

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you're going out with Tony, again. I actually think that this is the longest time he's ever been seen with the same woman," Rachel remarked, flipping through the latest issue of People Magazine.<p>

She was suppose to be helping Evelyn chose one of her new, many "seductive" outfits that Tony bought her. Like the lingerie, he went all out despite the sum up on the receipt.

"Listen to this," said Rachel. "Tony Stark surprised guests attending a local charity event for animal awareness by showing up with his personal assistant, Virginia 'Pepper' Potts as his plus one; thus sparked the rumor of an affair between employer and employee. However, the rumor was quickly extinguished when, at the same event, Mr. Stark left with another, unknown, woman. AHH, look at this picture of you two, Evie! ... Hm, maybe I should put my logo on the uniforms," she muttered to herself. "On the same note, Mr. Stark and the same woman have been spotted together on separate occasions. Who is this woman? What is her relationship with the world's number one bachelor?" she finished reading aloud. "Wow, Evie. You're in Malibu for three days and already you somehow nabbed one of the richest men in the world."

Evelyn glanced at her sister's reflection on the mirror. She turned around and placed her hands on her hips. "Rach, you're suppose to be helping me get dressed."

"I can't help it! You're on the dang cover." Rachel closed the magazine shut and turned it around to show Evelyn the cover. She was right. On the cover of the magazine was a clear-as-day picture of Tony and Evelyn "sneaking" out of the charity event. "Do you know how much publicity I can get if people find out who you are?"

"Rachel!" Evelyn gasped. "Me seeing Tony isn't about your business, it's about me finally catching my big break."

"Gee, sorry, how selfish of me," Rachel sarcastically replied.

"Besides, Tony and I are just friends. Now do what you said you would do and help me," Evelyn demanded, childishly stomping her foot on the floor. "How does this outfit look?" She twirled in a circle, modeling the outfit for her sister. She was dressed in a tight fitting black cocktail dress, a color that she hadn't really worn before; the straps were thick, and the helm reached a good six inches above her knees.

"I like it, it shows that you actually have curves." Rachel nodded. "What are you going to do with your hair though?"

"You don't think that I should keep it down?" Evelyn wondered, touching the ends of her hair. "I was thinking about curling it a bit."

"You always wear your hair down. Why don't you do something different? Sit down," Rachel directed, pointing to the stool in front of the make-up desk.

Evelyn complied.

"Let me work my magic," Rachel grinned, wiggling her fingers. "When I'm done with you, even you won't even recognize yourself."

"Is that a good or bad thing?" Evelyn questioned warily, feeling her sister tug at her hair.

"We'll just have to wait and see now won't we?" Rachel responded, tone light and cheery.

About 30 minutes pass before Evelyn could move on her own accord and not on Rachel's orders. She looked at her reflection and smiled. Rachel had pulled her hair back into a bun but left two strands loose and curled at the sides of her face and her bangs were straight and brushed to the side, appearing smooth a silky. Before she began getting dressed, Evelyn had put in her contacts; Rachel applied some make-up that make Evelyn's blue-eyes really _pop_. Rachel was right. Evelyn could hardly recognize herself and was in awe. She looked like she just stepped out of a magazine!

"Wow, Rach, you did an amazing job!" Evelyn gushed and tightly embraced her sister. She broke away and asked, "Where did you learn how to do this stuff?"

"Well, while you were busy at the Performance Art Academy, I was taking cosmetology classes at _normal_ high-school," Rachel proudly stated.

Evelyn smiled. "Thank you, Rach."

"You're welcome, Evie. Anything for you."

There were three quick knocks on Evelyn's bedroom door before Richard opened it. "Uh, Evie, Mr. Stark is here," he announced.

Evelyn glanced at her reflection again and snatched up the small purse that Rachel let her borrow to go with the outfit.

"Wish me luck," she said to both Rachel and Richard. "This will be my first big step in learning how to be the Black Swan."

Rachel opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted when Tony casually strolled into the room. "What's the hold up in here?" he asked. His attention turned to Evelyn, and his face visibly slacked.

Evelyn became self-conscious under his gaze. "What? What's wrong with me? Is it my hair? Dress? Make-up?"

Tony blinked, coming out of his daze. "Oh, no, you're... fine," he replied, his eyes trailing up and down her body.

"Psh, I'm glad that you're comfortable enough with my sister to barge in without an invitation, Mr. Stark," Rachel said irritably, eying Tony with obvious distaste.

"I'm sorry, have I upset you?" Tony wondered, looking at Rachel. "If so, I apologize." It was even obvious to Evelyn that he was being sarcastic.

"Ooh, I can tell you're just _oozing_ with sympathy," Rachel shrewdly retorts.

"Rachel," Evelyn whispered lowly, narrowing her gaze at her sister. She couldn't let her sister ruin her only chance at success if she rubbed Tony the wrong way.

Rachel huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Sorry," she apologized to Tony. "But my earlier statement to Evelyn still stands: If you do her wrong, I'll kill you."

"Rachel!" Richard and Evelyn gawked.

"Duly noted." Tony cleared his throat, switching his gaze from Rachel to Evelyn. "Ready to go? I made reservations for seven."

"Yeah, let's go." Evelyn nodded.

"Whoa, whoa, hold up there. Reservations?" Rachel stepped between Evelyn and Tony, but her attention was firmly on the CEO of Stark Industries. "I was under the impression that you're not trying to pursue my sister," she declared and then sharply spun around so that she was facing Evelyn. "Did you lie to me?"

"No!" Evelyn panicked, raising her hands.

Tony somehow wedged himself between Evelyn and Rachel. "Uh, Rachel, right?" he asked, but he didn't wait for her to answer. "I can assure you that nothing is going on between Evie and I. Not that I haven't tried," he leisurely shrugged. "Well, I guess when I really think about it, I haven't tried..." he trailed off, appearing to go into deep thought.

"Not helping, Tony," Evelyn sighed, gently pushing Tony out of her room. "Be back later, Rach– bye, Richard!"

"Bye, Evie," Richard was the only one to respond.

Evelyn and Tony were almost to the front door when a tiny voice caused both of them to stop. "Aunt Evie," Samantha called out. The four-year-old darted in the path of Tony and Evelyn, staring up at Tony with wide curious brown eyes. "Are you going to be my new uncle?" She benignly inquired.

Evelyn's jaw slacked. Words refused to come out of her mouth. Had she really forgotten how to use the English language in a time span of two seconds? Feeling her face and neck heat up in embarrassment, Evelyn smiled nervously, trying to win the inner-battle she seemed to be having with her mouth.

"Uh..." Tony trailed off and glanced at Evelyn before going back to Samantha. "No, little girl, I'm not," he answered slowly and cautiously.

Was he honestly afraid of a four-year-old?

"Why not?" Samantha cocked her head, clutching the stuffed panda bear she has in her grasp tighter.

Evelyn could tell that Tony was uncomfortable. She moved around him and knelt in front of Samantha. "Sammie, sweetie, shouldn't you be in bed right now?" she asked, tone raspy. She cleared her throat; finally she could speak!

"Yes." Samantha pouted, avoiding eye contact.

"Then go before I tell your mother."

"Okay." Samantha frowned. "Goodnight, Aunt Evie."

"Goodnight, sweetie." Evelyn returned Samantha's brief hug and watched the little girl run off towards her room. "Sorry about that," Evelyn apologized to Tony, embarrassed. "Quick, let's go before Danny learns how to walk and talk," she whispered,urgently leading Tony out of the house with rushed steps.

Pulled up along the curb was the silver Audi, that Evelyn learned the model of from asking Richard (a man). Tony opened the passenger door for Evelyn and closed it behind her once she was in.

Evelyn gazed out of the window at the passing scenery. She had been in Malibu for three days and she had yet to actually go anywhere, like, sight-seeing. She was too focused on preparing for the upcoming audition for _Swan Lake_.

Evelyn faced Tony. "Are we going to try lesson one again?"

"Bingo." Tony nodded, pulling into a curved entry way for valet parking.

Looking out of the window, Evelyn attempted to read the name of the restaurant but couldn't because it was in French. The valet opened the car door for Evelyn and he nodded politely at her after she stepped out. Tony met Evelyn at the front entrance of the restaurant, holding out his elbow so she could loop her arm with his. Within seconds the host greeted Tony by name and smiled at Evelyn, leading the pair to an intimate table set up for two with an awaiting waiter. Tony ordered a bottle of wine, and the waiter heads off.

Amazed at the courtesy of the restaurant's employees, Evelyn grinned at Tony.

"This place looks amazing!" she spoke up after the waiter was gone. "It must cost a fortune to eat here."

Tony shrugged carelessly and leaned against the table, propping his elbows on top the surface. "So, how do you feel?" he asked.

"I feel great," Evelyn answered truthfully, unable to contain another smile from spreading across her face. "I feel... different. Like I can do anything." She gazed at Tony with pure happiness. "I couldn't have done this without you, Tony. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Evie." He smiled back. "I can honestly say that it has been my pleasure to help you. If I could, I would help more women in need of my services." He winked.

Evelyn laughed and shook her head. "How did you learn to be so charming? Oh, wait, probably from your dad, right?"

When Tony's smile faltered, his eyes dimmed and lost their certain glint. Evelyn frowned as well. Did she say something wrong? ...Oh... Stupid Evelyn, stupid! She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She shouldn't had just assumed that Tony and his father were the best of buds. Dang, she ruined the once joyful mood.

"...I never knew my father," she suddenly blabbed, eyes focused on the elaborate design of white table cloth. "I don't remember anything from before I was 13. My mom told me that it was best that I don't remember, but, I can't help but still wonder. The only man who I guess was like a father to me was my step-dad, Scott; he's Rachel's biological father. But he didn't like me very much." she shrugged. "Actually, he didn't like me at all. He kept telling my mom that she should have left me in the hospital." She exhaled heavily. "They divorced when I was 15."

Evelyn gazed up at Tony and saw that he was staring at her with an unreadable expression on his face. She smiled at him weakly. She never told anyone about her past. The only person who knows was Rachel; not even Richard or the kids knew.

The waiter came to the table with the wine bottle Tony ordered and he poured some in two glasses.

"Are you ready to order, Mr. Stark?"

Tony didn't even look at the waiter. He kept his gaze on Evelyn. "No. Give us a moment, will ya?"

"Of course, sir." The waiter nodded before walking off.

Tony continued to stare intensely into Evelyn's eyes. "Why did you tell me that...?" he asked her softly.

Evelyn licked her lips, her mouth suddenly becoming dry. "Well, when I mentioned your father, I noticed that your smile dropped a bit and I thought that I should say something about my father..._step-father_...too."

Tony peered down into his wine glass, taking a sip. "You noticed my_ smile _drop?" he mumbled.

Evelyn nodded even though Tony wasn't looking at her.

"You really don't remember anything from before you were 13?" he asked suddenly, obviously wanting to change the subject.

Evelyn shook her head.

"And your mom never told you?"

Again, Evelyn shook her head, but this time she added a shrug.

"What about Rachel?"

"She, too. I guess she promised my mom that she wouldn't say anything," she replied.

Tony and Evelyn stared into each others eyes for a moment, and Evelyn bit her bottom lip as her cheeks flushed red; she smiled. The corners of Tony's eyes crinkled when he smiled back. He drank more of his wine and gestured for the waiter to come back.

"Let me order for you," he requested. "I think you'll like this specialty dish the chef makes."

"Okay." Evelyn nodded. She assumed that if the name of the restaurant was in French the menu would be in French as well.

When the waiter came by, Tony began speaking in fluent French. Evelyn openly stared at the amazing man sitting across from her. She only knew Tony for three days, but the time she spent with him roused something deep within her that she had never felt before. Felt kind of funny. She couldn't stop smiling, she couldn't stop staring, she couldn't stop the warm feeling in her chest and belly. Everything Tony did was brilliant to her. He was smart, charming, had a great sense of humor, was handsome – the list went on. Evelyn had never met anyone like him before.

Tony Stark was memorable.

"So...are you sure you don't want to give the thong another go?" Tony jested, wiggling his eyebrows.

Evelyn's face turned sour. "I don't understand why women think wearing those things makes them sexy," she complained. "I felt like I had a permanent wedgie. But every time I picked, there was nothing to pick. That or it just went right back up my butt," she scoffed, shaking her head.

Tony burst out laughing.

"It's not funny!" Evelyn whined.

"Only you, Evie, have the guts to speak the way you do," Tony snickered.

Evelyn's brow furrowed. "I don't know what you mean."

"You're so blunt and honest. You don't care what people think. That's a rare quality," he remarked, drinking from his wine.

"Is that a bad thing?" she asked, suddenly feeling nervous.

"I don't think so," he replied, genuine. "It's actually quite refreshing. My whole life I had people suck up to me; even Pepper was nothing but a pleaser when she first started working for me. So, by all means, don't be afraid to speak your mind around me."

Evelyn smiled. "Aye, aye, el cap-e-ton." She mock saluted.

A charming smile graced Tony's features. Evelyn's smile faltered when she fell into a light trance by the sheer warmth and honestly on his face. He was... Tony. Her smile reformed when she broke her trance and opened her purse. Clearing her throat, she took out a folded up piece of paper and unraveled it.

"Okay, I looked up on the internet '15 questions you should ask on a first date'-"

"First date?" Tony interrupted.

Evelyn looked up from the paper and saw that Tony's eyebrows practically shot up to his hairline. "Well, I thought you said that I have to pick you up so that you come home with me other than any other girl here."

"Oh... right." It was Tony's turn to clear his throat. He snatched the paper from Evelyn's grasp, crumpled it, and carelessly tossed it to the side. "We'll just wing it."

"Should you have just thrown it like that...?" Evelyn pointed in the direction the paper went.

Tony simply shrugged in response.

Evelyn raised a brow.

Did he nearly freak out when she mentioned First Date? Did that mean that even if he wasn't helping her in her pursuit to become more Black Swan-e, she would never ever get a first date with Tony Stark?

She licked her lips, her mouth suddenly becoming dry, and rubbed her nose. The news that Tony could never envision himself on an actual date with her made her feel stupid. Stupid to actually think that a guy like him would be interested in a girl like her. Forcing herself out of her own thoughts, Evelyn tried to focus on the task on hand and put on a fake smile, hoping that it would fool Tony into thinking that she was fine.

**[·]**

Tony walked Evelyn to Rachel's front door and they were both laughing at one of Evelyn's mishaps from dancing. His blazer was draped around her shoulders because the night air turned crisp when they left the restaurant.

She had a great time with Tony after she got over the fact that she had no chance with him. Which in a way was completely true, so why did she even think that she did?

They talked for what felt like hours. Tony was telling Evelyn of his many _rendezvous_ with women, and in turn Evelyn told him about her only friend back in New York, Marcus. They seemed to forget all about teaching Evelyn how to become more Black Swan-e. They were just having fun.

"I'm serious!" Evelyn laughed. "My leotard split right down the middle, showing off my underwear to the whole crowd but I didn't stop dancing. I didn't want to interrupt the show."

"I definitely need to see you dance," Tony declared, snickering. "When does _Swan Lake_ take the stage?"

"After the auditions that are in four weeks and the rehearsals that last about another two months... it's about ... four to five months," she calculated.

"I'll be there front and center," Tony replied, saluting.

The thought of Tony watching her perform excited Evelyn. "Really? You'll come to see me on stage?"

"I need to see my prodigy at work." He winked.

Evelyn didn't know what was coming over her; it was as if her body had a mind of its own. She leaned in towards Tony for a kiss, forgetting about her earlier thoughts about never standing a chance with this amazing man. The moment was interrupted when Tony pulled out a small box from his pocket. Evelyn gaped down at the box, her heart pounding in her chest; she literally stopped breathing for a few moments when Tony opened it, revealing a stunning diamond bracelet.

"Oh... my... God..." she murmured, taking the box from Tony's hands. "This is beautiful, Tony!"

"You think so?"

"Of course! What woman wouldn't love this?"

"So you think Pepper will like it?"

At the sound of Pepper's name, Evelyn's little bubble of happiness and bliss burst, causing reality to smack her across the face. This beautiful bracelet wasn't meant for her, it was meant for Pepper, Tony's assistant. She should had known. Of course this beautiful present was for Pepper. Tony said that he was going to get her something as an apology gift, and Evelyn was the one to recommend jewelry. Evelyn forced a smile on her lips and she nodded.

"I'm sure she'll love it." She handed the box back to Tony and then shrugged off his coat. "Well, I better go in before Rachel thinks the worst," she weakly chuckled. "I'll see you later, I guess."

"I have a few meetings tomorrow, but I can see you the day after," Tony said, taking his coat from Evelyn. "You're doing a great job so far, Evie. That part is as good as yours."

Evelyn wordlessly nodded, simpering. "Well... goodnight." She held out her hand for a handshake.

Tony raised a brow at her action but nonetheless he shook her hand. He pulled her forward though, and gently planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Goodnight, Evie."

Evelyn giggled. "Goodnight," she repeated with a wide, goofy smile.

She moved to head inside of the house, but collided with the closed door. Blinking away the tingling pain on her face, she pretended to laugh it off.

"Goodnight," she said once more and then _turned _the doorknob, entering the house and quickly shutting the door behind her. Leaning against the door, she lightly smacked the back of her head against the hard surface. She slowly inhaled and exhaled, closing her eyes. What was she doing? She knew her arrangement with Tony, but she couldn't help herself.

The reason why she asked him to help her become more Black Swan-e was the reason she was becoming too attached. He just had this aura that made her melt.

Shaking her head clear of her thoughts, Evelyn quietly headed to her room, trying not to wake anyone in the house. Softly closing her bedroom door behind her, she heard a loud, solid thump. Perplexed as to where the noise came from since she made extra sure to close her door softly, Evelyn scanned her room, trying to pin-point the location where she heard the noise. She found the closet door cracked open slightly. Did Rachel not close it all the way?

Heading over to the closet, she placed her hand on the small knob to shut it, but something from within the closet caught her eye. Sliding open the door, she saw that a box had fallen on top of her clothes, tilted to where it was nearly going to topple over and spill all of it's contents on the floor. She lifted the corner of the box and pushed it back into the attic space.

Wait. Attic space?

_I didn't know Rachel has an attic space._

Evelyn took the box, thinking that it probably belonged to the past residents that once owned the house, and placed it neatly on her bed. She stared up into the small square space that lead up to the attic of the house, wondering what else could be in there. However, she decided that she was tired and wanted to go to bed. Maybe she would take a look tomorrow since she doesn't have anything planned.

Changing into her nightgown, Evelyn snuck to the bathroom to brush her teeth, take out her contacts, and wipe her face clean of all the make-up Rachel smeared on her face. Tip-toeing back to her room, she (again) softly shuts the door and crawled onto the bed.

Dragging the box close to her, she opened it. Inside was a single journal.

"Big box for a small journal," Evelyn mumbled, but nevertheless took the journal out.

Pushing the empty box off of the bed, Evelyn got comfortable underneath the sheets. She opened the small black journal to the first entry.

_13 April 1942_

_I just got hired to be a back-up dancer to none other than Captain America! I think my luck has finally begun to change. Just think about it – a back-up dancer with Captain America today, and on Broadway tomorrow. Soon everyone will know the name Barbra Addams and come from miles around just to see me perform._

"Barbra Addams...?" Evelyn stopped reading, murmuring the name. This was her mothers journal.

Evelyn didn't know her mother danced with Captain America; she never mentioned it. If Evelyn ever danced for someone as big as him, she would have definitely bragged about it to all her children. Evelyn pushed her glasses further up her nose, continuing to read her mother's journal.

_I haven't actually met this Captain America guy, but he's in all of the papers – cute, too. Tall, muscular and exactly the guy that every woman dreams of marrying. Maybe once we begin the tour, I can convince him to have me on his arm. We would be the perfect couple: he the face of America, and I the starlet of Broadway. Hopefully the guys who hired me don't find out that I lied about my age during the audition. They called for girls over eighteen, and I'm only sixteen. But Mama and Pa won't mind, though. I'm sure once I make it big, they'll forgive me for leaving. I'll be able to buy them a nice, big house, and they'll never have to work another day in their life. I'll take care of them. _

_Well, I got to get packing. The train leaves tomorrow at 8-o'clock sharp. Don't wanna be late._

_-Barbra._

"Mom ran away from home when she was 16?" Evelyn wondered out loud, in shock. She never knew that either. How many other secrets had her mother been keeping from her and Rach? Sure Evelyn didn't remember anything from her childhood, but that didn't mean that she couldn't know more about her own mother.

Turning to the next entry, Evelyn continued reading her mother's thoughts from years ago, from before her daughters were born, and apparently, before she got married to Evelyn's step-father.

_23 April 1942_

_Our first show was today, and it was spectacular. I feel on top of the world when I'm on the stage. I feel as if I can do anything. All the claps and the applause from the audience is addicting and a sound that I will never forget. Of course most of the attention was on Captain America, (Steve he told me his name is), but some of the fellas in the audience were giving me and the other girls The Look. _

_On the note of Steve, I tried flirting with him, but apparently I wasn't the only one who had the intention of having him as a boyfriend. Some of the other girls who didn't have boyfriends waiting for them back home tried flirting with Steve, too. And those girls are older than me. They have more experience, while the furthest I ever went with a boy was letting Nelson feel me up underneath the bleachers at the football field. However, Steve is really nice. Too nice, really. He's not my type. I want someone who is assertive. Who knows how to treat a woman. Someone who can take care of me and my needs._

_Tomorrow we are back on the road, going to another town. I will never tire of this gig._

_-Barbra_

_2 May 1942_

_Show is over. Steve went missing and never showed up for the show and it was canceled. Everything was canceled. The producers told the other girls and I to go home, but I don't want to go home. I left home for this job, hoping that it would help me get my big break. New York was the next stop. Surely somebody would have noticed me there, I just know it! Why didn't Steve shown up? He ruined everything!_

_15 June 1942_

_I miss Ma. I miss Pa. I should have went home, but I just couldn't face them. I wanted to go home a huge Broadway dancer. I wanted to go home a star. But right now that doesn't seem like it would ever happen. I work at some bar selling smokes to whomever is interested. I can barely afford this crap hole I share with Molly, one of the other dancers who didn't go home either. She's older than me by a few years, and said that she reminds me of her little sis that she left back home; I forget what she told me her name was._

_- Barbra_

_17 June 1942_

_I now know what hell must be like._

By that short entry of a single sentence, Evelyn felt her heart and stomach drop. Her mother went through a lot before she finally did make the big times. And now Evelyn knew how much harder it could have been for her if her mother hadn't given her a head start in dancing by giving her the name Addams. Evelyn was living off of her mother's name, off her mother's fame. Imagine if Barbra Addams wasn't her mother. She probably wouldn't be where she was now. Heck, she probably wouldn't even have been allowed in the Performance Arts school that was known for its high tolerance in performers.

Evelyn turned to another entry.

_23 July 1942_

_I think this is it. I think I finally got my big break! A man came up to me... Wow. I actually forgot his name. How could I forget his name? He's the one who's gonna help me make it big. Oh well, I'm suppose to meet him again tomorrow at the bar, so I'll learn it again. And he chose me of all people! ME. Even over Molly, who is more experienced than I am! I am so excited!_

_World, here I come!_

_-Barbra_

Evelyn smiled at the excited and rushed entry. Her mother was finally catching a break, just like Evelyn would be once she aced those auditions. She turned to the next entry, expecting to hear more of her mother's exited words but she found something scribbled in a foreign language that she didn't recognize. Flipping through the rest of the journal, she found it to be the last entry, too.

"Odd," she uttered, bewildered. She squinted at the foreign words, trying to decipher them in her head, but when it didn't make any sense, she began to speak them out loud.

"_Potestatem Drusilla surgunt / __Cursum inuise trans aethera / __Venite ad me, ad te clamo / __Et sede hic venit ad me_."

An electrical surge brightened the lights to near blinding. Evelyn had to clamp her eyes shut in order to shield them to the harsh lighting, but even from through her closed eyelids she could feel that they were burning.

(_Snap_!)

The light bulb in the lamp on the nightstand and the three others in the ceiling fan burst, shattering into pieces and raining down on Evelyn like sharp, cold rain. Her body stung in pain, and it felt as if the electrical surge traveled throughout her entire body – everything tingled.

"AHH!" multiple high pitched screams filled the once quiet night air.

Evelyn threw off the covers and ran out of her room. She saw Rachel run out of hers and Richard's room, heading towards Samantha's and Danny's. Richard came out soon after with a flashlight.

"Evie?" He called out to Evelyn, aiming the beam of light towards her. "You all right?" he asked, breathless.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Some kind of electrical surge. I'm going to check the fuse box," he answered, walking past her and in the direction of the garage.

Evelyn let Richard do his own thing, and she padded over to Danny's room where she last saw Rachel go into. Wincing and hissing in pain, she lifted up her foot and saw tiny shards of glass embedded in her feet. Looking up towards the ceiling, she discovered that the hallway lights were shattered. She gulped deeply. Could it have been because she spoke those weird words out loud? What could they possibly mean?

"Ah!" Evelyn cried out, holding her stomach. She fell to her knees, and compared to the burning sensation she felt at her side, the shards of glass embedding into her knees felt like nothing.

"Evie!" Richard knelt down by Evelyn's side. "What's wrong?"

"My side," Evelyn hissed. "My side... it burns."

"Let me see, let me see." Richard lifted her nightgown, not caring about seeing her in her underwear. "Holy crap... What is that?"

Evelyn panickeded. "What? What is it? What do you see?"

"Your tattoo... it's glowing."

"What?" Evelyn gasped. "That's impossible."

"No, Evie. It's _glowing_," Richard stressed. "I think we have to take you to the hospital."

At the mention of the hospital, the burning sensation in Evelyn's side dissipated. She peered down at her tattoo and moved Richard's hand out of the way so she could have a better view. The ink faded from a deep crimson back to black. She met Richard's gaze, matching his look of puzzlement.

"Is everyone all right?" Rachel asked, breaking the silence.

Evelyn snapped her attention up toward her sister, letting her nightgown fall back to her knees.

"What's going on?" Rachel looked back and forth from Richard and Evelyn. "Oh my God, Evie, your knees!" she gasped, pointing.

Evelyn looks down, seeing that blood was trickling from various places on her knees, streaming down her calves. She let Rachel drag her over to the kitchen, where she kept the first-aid kit in one of the drawers. Rachel guided Evelyn to one of the chairs and began removing the shards of glass piece by piece. Richard was holding the flashlight, remaining quite.

"Did you check the fuse box?" Rachel asked him.

"The fuses are fried. I'll have to buy a whole new set in the morning," he replied.

"What about the others? Is the entire block out, too?"

"I don't know, I didn't check."

"Go check, I've got this," said Rachel, taking the flashlight from Richard and handing it over to Evelyn. "You, hold this."

Evelyn did as told, and Richard left to go outside to see if the neighbors experienced the same electrical charge they did. If they did, then that meant that it wasn't Evelyn's fault the lights went out; it was something else, something logical, something rational.

"You all right?" Rachel asked softly.

"Fine," Evelyn murmured, still freaked out about what she read off her mother's journal.

"If you say so; then this might sting a little." Rachel dabbed Evelyn's knees with rubbing alcohol and then tightly bandaged them up.

"Everyone else is fine," Richard voice announced from the distance.

Evelyn's face went ashen, and her stomach dropped. So this was all her fault...? God, what did she do?

* * *

><p><strong><span>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Evelyn tries to come to grip with what happened the night before, and Tony proves to be a good distraction.

_Sarah: Oh your reviews never cease to fuel me with motivation to make this story awesome. And WHAT?! What movie?! When?! Where?! OMG!_


	5. Patient 364-152

**Chapter Five: _Patient #364-152_**

* * *

><p>Evelyn was startled awake by the high-pitched scream of Danny.<p>

She panicked. Was someone in the house? Did another bizarre occurrence happen while she was sleeping? Stupid! She shouldn't had read strange text that was in a strange language out loud. Had she learned _nothing_ from watching all those horror movies?

No sooner did Evelyn think this thought, Rachel's stern and motherly tone told Danny to behave. The tension building in Evelyn's shoulders faded away at Rachel's voice.

So everything was fine?

Pushing herself up, Evelyn found herself on the floor in her room, tucked safely at the corner. How did she end up there? She could had sworn that she fell asleep in her bed. Evelyn raised to her feet and quickly grabbed everything she needed for a shower, escaping the dark aura filling her room.

Turning on the water to let it heat up, Evelyn sat on the toilet-lid, staring down at her bandaged knees with a frown was on her lips. She slowly and carefully swung her legs forward and backwards, trying not to be bothered by the light stinging sensation of pain coming from underneath the tightly wrapped bandages. She hoped that the injury didn't disable her from dancing.

_It's only a few cuts,_ she tried to comfort her racing thoughts. _They'll heal over in no time. They weren't even that deep._ Evelyn slowly peeled off the bandages so she could properly take a shower. Odd, the cuts had scabbed over and appeared to be healing rather quickly, a lot quicker than expected. She shrugged off her thoughts, thinking it was because she was right about the cuts being shallow and got in the shower.

Today she would have the day to herself, Tony said that he will be busy, and Rachel and Richard had to work. Evelyn wondered if the reason for Tony being "busy" the was because of Pepper. Was he devoting the entire day to his assistant? Evelyn shook her head. Tony's personal life was none of her business. He could do whatever he wanted with _who_ever he wanted.

The center between Evelyn's eyebrows began to feel numb. She clamped her eyes shut in an attempt to make the funny feeling go away, but it didn't help. Slowly and on its own, it dissipated.

Scrubbing her body with soap, just as her hand passed across her stomach, Evelyn stopped when she felt a tenderness at her side. The spot where her tattoo was was oddly sore. Was it from when she and Richard saw it turn red?

Because of her bad eye-sight, Evelyn couldn't really see anything wrong with the sore spot. Simultaneously turning off the water and reaching for a towel, she wiped her body dry and inwardly cursed when steam fogged up the mirror. Without much thought about her nakedness, she walked out of the bathroom and into her room. Shoving on her glasses, she gazed down at her hip. Her fingers traced the tribal like mark, and she cringed every time she touched it or went near the black ink.

And then her attention veered down to her knees. Her scabs were gone. In fact, any sign of ever being injured were gone. That was impossible right? Cuts couldn't heal over and go away in a single night.

Evelyn silently dressed herself in a pair of house shorts and white spaghetti strap. Her thirst for answers about her unknown childhood returned with a vengeance: Why on earth would a 13-year-old have a tattoo? Why couldn't she remember a _single_ memory from before The Place? Why was was she in a hospital for most of her childhood, instead of home with Rachel, Barbra and Scott (her step-father)? Why did Scott not want her? Why didn't she know about her real father? Not even a name.

Coming out of her room, Evelyn found Rachel on a latter trying to screw in a light bulb in the ceiling fans. Danny was in his play-pen, and Samantha was watching TV on the couch.

"Don't you have work today?" Evelyn asked.

"Yeah, but I think I'm going to go, there's too much to do here. I can't even let the kids run around without finding more glass," Rachel sighed.

Guilt tugged at Evelyn's heartstrings. This was all her fault. "I can clean up the place and put in the light bulbs," she offered. "Go ahead and go to work."

"You sure? I can stay and help," Rachel responded, wary.

"Rach, the only reason I'm here is because I have nothing else to do," Evelyn countered. "I think I can screw in some light bulbs."

"And vacuum," Rachel added. "Maybe sweep and mop a little, and do the dishes, wash a load of laundry..." she tried to casually add.

Evelyn chuckled. "Sure, that too." She knew how much difficulty Rachel had in raising two kids and juggling her own business.

"Thanks Evie, you're a life savor." Rachel kissed Evelyn's cheek. "Kids, come on, we still have time to drop you off at Tumble Tots!"

"Yay!" both Samantha and Danny shouted simultaneously. Well, Danny sort of just gurgled his happiness.

"The spare light bulbs are on the couch, but if you need more you might have to go to the hardware store," Rachel explained, trying to rush the kids out of the door. "I'll make it up to you when I get back!"

Evelyn was left in a silent house. Her head turned towards the pile of boxes of light bulbs on the couch and the step-latter Rachel was using. Well, she better get started now, get it done faster. Doing a walk-through of the house, Evelyn discovered that Rachel already did most of the house, and all that was left was Evelyn's room and the living room. Shrugging, since most of her workload was already done, she grabbed a box of light bulbs and then dragged the step-latter over underneath the ceiling fan. When she was on the last light bulb, a familiar 'thump' caught her attention.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Slowly stepping down the latter, Evelyn's full attention was on her bedroom door; barely visible from her spot in the living room. She crept over to her door and cautiously opened it. Her closet was ajar, just as it was when she came home last night.

Evelyn gulped. "Hello?" she meekly called out.

There was no answer. She headed over to the closet and slid open the door. To her horror, the attic space was open again, but this time there was no box.

"Don't go up in the creepy attic space, Evie," Evelyn sang lowly to herself. Although, she did the exact opposite and pushed aside her clothes so she could have more room to climb up to the attic. She quickly jogged back to the living room to get the the step-latter, dragging it over to her room. Climbing up so that half her body was up in the attic space, dust wafts in Evelyn's nose causing her to sneeze. She squinted into the dark, vaguely spotting the outline of another box. Dragging the box towards her, she tried to gently pull it out of the attic opening, but her foot missed a step on the latter and she ungracefully tumbled to the floor.

Some ballerina she was.

An old VHS tape slid up to Evelyn's face; she picked it up and hovers it over her head. Reading the label on the tape, she took a second look at the box: _Patient #364-152: Evelyn Marie Addams_. As Evelyn uprights herself, she looked into the box to see that it was filled with similar tapes, along with other items. Rummaging through the box, she took out a plastic hospital identification bracelet; she remembered the chafing she got from messing with it after she was released to the care of her mother.

_Evelyn Marie Addams, _Evelyn read her name underneath her patient ID number.

But she didn't remember the tapes.

Shoving the spilled items back into the box, Evelyn, with some difficulty, dragged it out to the living room and dumped out all of the items onto the floor. When she went to the TV to play one of the tapes, she realized that only a Blu-ray player was connected to the 60" flat screen mounted on the wall.

Did Rachel even own a VHS player anymore?

_Wait, mom did!_ Evelyn went to the garage to search through her mother's old junk. When she found the dusty, old VHS player, she rushed back to the living room to connect the wires to the TV.

There were at least fifteen or so tapes scattered all over the floor, though. Which one should she chose to see first?

Sighing, Evelyn took a moment to contemplate what she just found. Her whole life before the age of 13 could be on these tapes. Well, at least the part where she was in the hospital as patient #364-152. But how long she was in the hospital for? (Another question left unanswered by her mother.)

Quirking her mouth to the side, Evelyn's eyes scanned through the tapes again. Choosing one at random, she slid the tape into the VHS player slot and pressed play. Sitting on her legs in front of the screen, she watched with sharp eyes as the tape played, showing an all white room; a mattress took up one side of a wall which appeared to be padded, but Evelyn was more focused on the little girl who was staring _straight_ at the camera. Dark-brown locks fell to the length of her chin, her skin was smooth of any blemishes and was a creamy white, her cheeks ere tinged a rosy red, and round blue-eyes stared dolefully up at the camera. She looked awfully familiar.

_That's me... _Evelyn gawked. Her eyes veered down to the tape's time and date at the corner of the screen; she was seven-years-old and, oddly, wide awake at three in the morning. Wow. She was 29 now and gets sleepy by 10 o'clock.

Evelyn couldn't lie to herself, but right now, watching the younger version of herself staring at some security camera at three in the morning was freaking her out.

Maybe she was in the hospital for insomnia?

Fast-forwarding the tape, Evelyn kept switching her gaze back and forth between her seven-year-old self and the time stamp. Hours zoomed by and she didn't move from the exact same position of staring benignly at the camera. This caused her to worry. What was wrong with her?

The tape came to an end, but Evelyn stayed rooted to the spot in front of the TV. Her eyes were wide and glossy with unshed tears; her breathing escaped from her mouth in slow and semi-ragged gasps. According to the tape's time, she hadn't moved a single inch for an entire day. Tell her that was not freaky?

Maybe she shouldn't watch the rest of the video? Maybe they were all full of her just staring up at the camera?

Ejecting the video tape, Evelyn scooted over to the box, wanting to put it back. The palm of her hand pressed down on her old patient ID band. Curling her fingers around the plastic bracelet, she picked it from the floor.

She spent most of her life wondering about her past, and now that all of the answers were right in front of her, she was wimping out? She always wimped out whenever she grew too scared or cautious about the outcome.

Silently clasping the patient band around her left wrist, Evelyn stared down at it with a dazed expression on her face. She lightly traces the band with the tips of her fingers and felt something buzz in the back of her mind, telling her to continue looking through the tapes. She had to know.

**[·]**

Gnawing on her thumb nail with her eyes glued to the TV, Evelyn tapped the eraser end of a pencil against a yellow notepad she found in the kitchen. Scribbled so far were more questions about the tapes she watched through, not answers. Nothing really stood out too much, the surveillance tapes that she had gone through were of her throughout the years in her little white room, watching the video camera with a small smirk on her face- as if she knew someone was watching her. There were some hours where she would sleep, but most of the time she was wide awake.

"Caramelle Dansen!" the upbeat Swedish pop-song broke through the quite air, and out of instinct for choosing the song as her cellphone ring tone, Evelyn bounced from her seat on the couch, dancing. This song always lifted her spirits.

Fishing the phone out from underneath her bottom, she didn't recognize the number on the screen. Should she answer it? She was quite busy, though she never willingly ignored a phone call before (she felt bad whenever she _unintentionally_ did it).

"Hello?" she answered after pausing the video tape.

"Good, you answered. I was beginning to think you wouldn't."

"Tony? How did you get my phone number?" Evelyn brow furrowed, she tried to remember whether she gave it to him or not.

"I have my ways," Tony slyly replied.

"Is this your actual phone number, or is this like the call card you gave me?" she countered.

"This is my actual contact number, so don't go and sell it on e-bay or anything."

A toothy smile stretched across Evelyn's face.

"So, how would you feel about having a late lunch with me?" he asks.

She sat up straight, sliding her legs over the edge of the couch. "I thought you said you were busy today?"

"And I still am," he responded. "Pepper made me attend a few meetings with the Board of Directors and a few potential buyers, but I'm bored. I can use a good distraction."

"So you call me?" she wondered, bewildered. Why would he call her? Why not have a late lunch with Pepper?

"Well...yeah. Who else would I call?"

Evelyn giggled. She only knew Tony for a few days, and already he was talking to her as if they were old chums. She checked the time on the wall-clock hanging above the living room fireplace; almost two in the afternoon. Her stomach rumbled. She hadn't had breakfast either. As soon as she found the tapes, she got so absorbed into watching them that she forgot to eat.

"I can have lunch," she replied. "What time?"

There came three knocks on the door.

"Now," said Tony.

Evelyn twisted around in her spot on the couch and looked toward the front door with a raised brow. Was Tony seriously at the door, or was it just some weird coincidence? Jogging over to the front door with her cellphone still pressed firmly to her ear, Evelyn opened it to reveal an impeccably dressed Tony Stark. His hair was slicked back, sun-glasses hung loosely on the bridge of his nose, and he was in a three piece silver suit.

Evelyn was dressed in rags compared to him.

She cocked her head. "How long have you been standing out here?"

"Not long, ten minutes tops." Tony said. as if him standing outside Rachel's door for ten minutes "tops" was nothing. "Is your sister home?"

Evelyn shook her head. "No."

"Oh, good." Tony exhaled a sigh of relief and walked past Evelyn, into the house.

Evelyn rolled her eyes at his action. Smiling softly, she closed the door.

"So what are you in the mood for? Mexican? Chinese? Japanese...?" Tony trailed off as he entered the living room and saw the many tapes and items that Evelyn had strewn across the floor; mainly just little trinkets: shoelaces, her hospital uniform, and the arts and crafts pieces she made while hospitalized. Tony's eyes zoned in on the TV, at the paused image of a ten-year-old Evelyn staring up at the camera. "Am I interrupting something?" he inquired.

"Remember when I told you that I can't remember anything from before I was 13? Well I found this box in the attic space that had my mother's old journal in it, and it had some weird language written on the last page, so naturally, I read it out loud and all this weird stuff started happening to me. I went back in the attic space this morning and found another box that had all my old hospital stuff in it," Evelyn explained. "I've been going through the tapes all day."

A part of Evelyn thought that Tony would be freaked out by what she was saying and would leave and never come back, but she was surprised when he continued to speak casually.

"Did you find anything out?" he asked, peering down at the tapes. He bent over and picked up some of Evelyn's drawings, leafing through them.

Evelyn shook her head. "Just that I think that I had insomnia, or some kind of sleep disorder. All the tapes I watched had me wide awake for days at a time," she said warily. "I still have some more to go through."

Tony placed the drawings on the couch and faced Evelyn. He tentatively lifted her left hand and slid his thumb across the hospital band still wrapped around her wrist. "I can take a look into it if you want?" he offered.

Evelyn's heart fluttered in her chest at Tony's gentle touch. "I wouldn't want to bother you with my petty problems," she murmured.

He gazed deeply into her eyes and replied, "Really, it's no problem."

Worry and excitement tingled up Evelyn's spine. Tony, for sure, would find something about her past that she couldn't with just a few surveillance tapes. But what if he found something that she couldn't handle?

"I don't know..." Evelyn spoke cautiously.

"Too bad, I'm doing it," Tony declared with a charming grin; his eyes twinkled with mischief. "Get dressed, I think you can use a break."

"What should I change in to?" she asked.

Tony's eyes trailed down Evelyn's body, causing her face to heat up, and then he meet her gaze. He gave her a crooked smile that melted her insides. He guided her to her room, though when she saw the closet she stopped, scared. He noticed her fright and switched his gaze back and forth between her and the closet. The closet door was still open, and the step-latter was tipped over on its side.

"Is that where you found the box?" he asked, pointing up the ceiling within the closet.

She nodded.

Tony checked the closet and propped up the step-latter. He climbed up to the top step, and Evelyn watched with worry when he took a look in the attic space for himself. What if there was something else in there that she missed? Whatever made the light bulbs burst wanted her to find something in the attic space, but what? Her mother's diary? The box? Was that it? Or was there more?

He stepped down and dusted off his suit. "All clear," he uttered.

Evelyn's chest deflated of the breath she was holding in, relieved. "Really?"

"Really," he repeated. He stepped up to her, grasping both of her shoulders, and then positioned her next to the closet.

Evelyn was tense, but she slowly relaxes. Tony went through the clothes he brought for her and picked out a navy blue dress with a dangerously low 'V' neck. He held it out over her body, briefly scanned it with skilled eyes and then shook his head, putting the dress back into the closet. He took out another dress, a flowing deep purple cocktail dress with virtually no back, and did the same thing he did with the first dress, positioning it over Evelyn's front. He nodded and placed the dress in her arms.

"Put that on..." he commanded and then squatted down to the ground, where Evelyn's many shoes were neatly aligned on the closet floor. "...with these shoes," he added, picking out strappy three-inch silver heels.

Evelyn eyed the elegant choice of clothing with furrowed brows. "Where are we going?"

"Since you took forever in deciding where you want to go, _I_ chose Italian. I know a nice place a few miles from here," Tony responded. "Consider it the next location of your training in the Art of Seduction." He winked.

"Really?" Evelyn beamed at the thought of another seduction lesson. She ushered Tony out of her room so that she could get dressed. After she closed and locked the door, still effected by his run in at Victoria's Secret, she rushed to change into the beautiful, flowing dress and high-heels. Her fear of the closet didn't even cross her mind once. When finished putting on the clothes, she combed her wavy hair up into a bun, applied some make-up, and struggled to put on her contacts.

_Another day, another lesson, and one step closer to getting that part,_ Evelyn told herself, smiling at her reflection. "Ready!" she announced gleefully to no one in particular. Her hand reached for the doorknob, but then something caught her attention from the corner of her eye: her mother's diary. _Tony did offer to help..._ Plus she really wanted to know exactly what she read out loud that brought up all these strange occurrences.

Evelyn snatched her mother's diary from the nightstand and stepped out of the room. "Hey," she called out to Tony while turning to her mother's last entry which contained the weird writing. "Do you think you can translate this?" she asked, passing over the leather journal.

Tony looked down at the writing with a furrow in his brow. "What is this?"

"It's my mother's journal," she answered. "It's the first thing I found from the attic. Do you know what it says?"

Tony shook his head. "I think this is in Latin. I'll have Jarvis translate it after lunch," he said. "Ready to go?" he asked, tucking the journal underneath the crook of his armpit.

"Ready as I'll ever be," she chimed, happily skipping to the front door.

**[·]**

"How did Pepper like the bracelet?" Evelyn asked, picking at her food.

She and Tony spent the ride to the little Italian restaurant in silence, not uncomfortable though, it was rather pleasant; just sitting in each others company. But the knowledge of Tony giving Pepper the stunning diamond bracelet was killing her, she had to know the outcome of the exchange! Did Pepper tell him of her feelings? Did he tell her?

"She loved it," said Tony.

Evelyn could hear the pleased tone in his voice, and she smiles. Even though she was envious of Tony's obvious affection for his assistant, she was glad that, perhaps someday, the two could find love and happiness together. Yes she had feelings for him, but probably all the women he met did. She didn't want to ruin the friendship they had by blurting out her attraction for him.

"But..." his tone changed from pleased to confused and hurt? His usually exuberant eyes dimmed a shade darker. "I couldn't help but notice that after she got over the excitement of getting something shiny, she pulled away."

"Maybe she was shy." Evelyn shrugged, feeling sympathetic for Tony. "You have been her boss for years; she probably needs some time to adjust to the idea getting into a serious relationship with you."

"Serious relationship?" Tony swiftly responded, face ashen.

Oh, yeah, she almost forgot that he had never been in a serious relationship before.

"I don't do serious," he objected, shaking his head.

Evelyn's jaw slacked. "So what were you planning on doing with her after she confessed her feelings for you?"

He shifted in his seat. "I don't know." He shrugged.

Evelyn was about to respond, but then she heard a rather loud woman "whisper" a comment about she and Tony: "Well, well, will you look at those two. I wonder where he found this one? She's certainly _different_."

"I think I've seen her with him before..." another lady "whispered".

"Do you see that band on her arm? Wonder what happened."

Evelyn's face flushed, and a deep pit formed in her stomach. She tried to cover the hospital band still wrapped around her wrist; she forgot to take it off.

"Consider this your next lesson." Tony leaned back in his seat, arm draped across the back of the chair.

Evelyn's nose scrunched, confused. Wasn't he embarrassed to be seen with her? It looked as if he was on a date with a fresh out of the loony bin mental patent!

"Confidence," he stated firmly. "Ignore what people may and will say about you. Ooze confidence, and all the attention will be on you on that stage, I guarantee it."

"I have confidence." Evelyn muttered, tone small and meek.

Tony raised a brow, obviously catching her lie. He propped his elbows on the table-top, leaning close to her. "Then why are you covering up your hospital band?"

She fumbled for a response. "I just...aren't you ashamed of-"

"Ashamed?" he raised a brow. "Because of two old ladies gossiping?"

"This band says I'm from a mental hospital," Evelyn whispered as quietly as possible, but still audible enough for Tony to hear her complaint.

"And still you would be the sanest woman I've ever been with." He shrugged.

She gawked. "What kind of women do you date?"

Tony chuckled and winked. "Tell me, Evie," he changed the subject, "can you dance anything other than ballet?"

"Of course." She nodded. "My mom taught me everything she knows, and she danced on Broadway."

The corner of Tony's lips quirked upwards. "Can you Salsa?"

"Salsa?" Evelyn mimicked. Yes she could Salsa, it was one of her favorite dances. "Yes. Why?"

"Come with me."

**[·]**

Unlike the ride to the restaurant, the ride back to Rachel's was filled with laughter and anecdotes. Much like their first attempt at a lesson in the Art of Seduction, teaching Evelyn how to become Black Swan-e was forgotten.

Tony made her forget all about her anxiety caused by finding those boxes in the attic. He was a good distraction.

He walked her up to the front door, leaning against the door frame while she slid her key into the lock.

"Well..." he sighed. "...I probably should head back to New York before Pepper bites my head off."

She gawked at him. "You came all the way from New York?"

"That's the perk of having my own plane." He leisurely shrugged, gazing down at her with a soft smile. "I go wherever I want, whenever I want."

Evelyn's mouth trembled as she struggled to find something to say. She shouldn't be feeling or acting this way around Tony when he had feelings for Pepper (though he wouldn't openly admit them). Licking her lips, she broke their gaze, murmuring, "Thank you for lunch and the advice. I had fun."

"It's no problem," he murmured back.

She smiled weakly and lifted her hand to tuck a lose strand of her hair behind her ear, but Tony beat her to the punch. His hand lingered on her cheek. She met his gaze, again, getting lost in their intensity. No one had ever stared at her the way he was right now. She felt flushed and tingly all over; she gulped as her body temperature raised a few degrees.

His face drew in closer; excitement bubbled within her chest. Was he actually going to kiss her? _Her_? His lips brushed against hers, and her eyes fluttered shut as she waited for him to fully kiss her. But then the moment was interrupted (again) when Tony's phone rang. Evelyn wanted to groan aloud.

Clearing his throat, Tony took a step away from Evelyn to answer the call. She frowned when his gaze dropped to the ground, and then he turned his back to her.

"I went out to grab some lunch... I was in the mood for Italian... Pepper, come on, you don't actually need me there. You know what you're doing, that's why I hired you."

When she heard Pepper's name, Evelyn's eyes burned with oncoming tears but she tried to keep them in. Oh God, what was she about to do with Tony? She actually... she _wanted_ him to kiss her. She _wanted_ him to wrap his arms around her, drawing her close to him as humanly possible.

"I have to go," Tony said to her after ending the call. He was still not meeting her gaze.

"Yeah..." Evelyn nodded repeatedly. "Yeah, okay."

"I'll... I'll call you."

"Okay."

Evelyn watched as Tony left her at Rachel's door-stoop. She took in a deep breath, hoping to calm her pounding heart, flushed face, and hazed mind. She nodded to herself, exhaled through her mouth, and went inside.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Tony keeps his word and finds what he can about Evie. What he uncovers results in a trip to _The Place_.

_IAmObsessed: I tried to respond to you through PM, but you have that feature off. I apologize again for having deleted it, but I honestly thought that no one liked it._

_Guest: Best Stark/OC fanfiction ever? Pft, I wish. But thank you, your review made me smile :)_

_Norrine: Sorry about the late update, it's entirely my fault. I've been focusing all my free time on my Kingsman fanfiction._


	6. In Over My Head

**Chapter Six: _In Over My Head_**

* * *

><p>Tossing a stress ball back and forth in his hands, Tony was in deep thought. His head was filled with thoughts of Evie and their lunch together. There had been a huge change in her on the dance floor, like she switched personalities. She went from bashful and timid to courageous and daring, and he liked it. She was confident on the dance floor, like she was in her element.<p>

She really did love to dance.

A small smile formed on his lips and his eyes twinkled when his memory flashed back to the end of their dance. Her skin was so soft, so smooth and cool to the touch. Her mouth was slightly parted and every so often she would run her tongue along her bottom lip, just waiting to be kissed as she stared deeply into his eyes with such intensity.

He couldn't help his growing attraction to her. Once he took her home—to an empty house no less—he had the opportunity to make the first move: to kiss her, to _take_ her; that was what he originally wanted when he first laid eyes on her. But he didn't. He couldn't. Evie was...different. Special.

And then Pepper called and interrupted the moment. Tony didn't know if he should had felt relieved or pissed.

Oh, wait. Pepper. Crap, he almost forgot about her. With a grimace Tony gazed at his assistant, she was engrossed with some sort of paperwork in her lap. His eyes traveled down to the diamond bracelet dangling on her right wrist, and he smirked. How could he have easily forgotten about the woman who practically ran his life? The woman who Evie was _helping _him try to woo?

Pepper must had noticed Tony's staring because she looked up at him and shyly smiled before going back to her paperwork.

Tony smiled back, switching his gaze out of his window after Pepper broke eye contact. With Evie, Tony lost himself, he could be himself with her, she didn't judge him, didn't look at him and saw Tony Stark, CEO of Stark Industries, she saw him as Tony – just Tony...and she hadn't ran away at the knowing of his many escapades; she embraced it.

_Evelyn Marie Addams._ Tony thought of Evie's full name. _What have you done to me?_ If it wasn't for her, he would had never thought about his complicated feelings for Pepper. But now that he was actually thinking about his feelings and crap (Ew) – there was Evie: sweet, naive, bubbly, too-innocent-for-Tony-to-taint Evelyn Marie Addams. She was completely different from confident, head-strong, and determined Virginia 'Pepper' Potts. Actually, there was no one quite like Evie. No one. He knew her for only few days, and already he couldn't think of doing anything that didn't involve Evie tagging along. Come on, he left right in the middle of a meeting because he was hungry, flew all the way back to Miami just so that he could see what she was doing.

Speaking about what Evie was doing.

_'Jarvis.'_ Tony typed on his all purpose phone. He didn't want Pepper or Obi (who was also with them on the plane) to know what he was going to ask his A.I. to do.

_'Yes, Sir?'_ Jarvis responded._ 'May I ask why you are using this method of communication?'_

_'I'll explain later. Right now I want you to look into something for me. I need you to find anything you can about a woman named Evelyn Marie Addams, between the age group of 25 – 30.'_

_'I'll get right on it, Sir,'_ Jarvis replied.

"Refresh your drink, Mr. Stark?" one of Tony's flight attendants asked.

Tony nodded, holding out his empty glass that was once filled with the finest of scotch. When the flight attendant went to get him more, he remembered the journal Evie gave him. She mentioned that she read something in Latin out loud from the book. He pulled out the small leather bound journal that he had tucked away into the inner-pocket of his suit jacket and flipped to the last page, reading the text in his head, hoping that he could possibly translate it himself. He couldn't.

_'I also need you to translate something for me, Jarvis.'_ He typed to his A.I._ 'Potestatem Drusilla surgunt / Cursum inuise trans aethera / Venite ad me, ad te clamo / Et sede hic venit ad me. I think it may be in Latin. Try that first before scanning other languages.'_

_'Yes, Sir.'_

"What are you smiling about over there?"

Tony cleared the evidence of his and Jarvis' conversation from his phone, nonchalantly looking up at Obi. Obi removed his reading glasses and cast a knowing glance at him.

"Nothing, why do you ask?" Tony answered.

Obi chuckled, wagging his finger. "Now don't you lie to me, Tony. I know you better than anyone. What's her name?"

"Why do you automatically assume that it's a woman?" Tony raised a brow.

"When it is ever not about a woman?" Obi retorted. "Come on, tell me, who's holding your attention for the day?"

Tony quickly stole a glance towards Pepper, who in return, was trying—and failing—to contain a smile.

"Is it that girl from the papers? That waitress from that charity event?" Obi inquired.

"She's a ballet dancer," Tony corrected. "And her name is Evie."

Obi nodded, impressed. "A ballet dancer? That's new," he said. "How long have you been seeing this one?"

Tony was slightly bothered by Obi calling Evie, "This one", as if she was like all the other girls he briefly dated for a day. A frown was now on his lips. "Four days," he replied, hoping that it would put Obi's "for the day" comment to rest. He didn't spare a glance to Pepper, knowing that she was most definitely staring at him with either hurt or disappointment on her face. And he didn't want to see that look on her face, ever.

"Four days? That's a new record! Nice job there, son." Obi chuckled.

"Don't get your hopes up, Obi." Tony forced himself to put his full attention on Pepper, hoping to explain that she had nothing to worry about. "We're just friends. Strictly platonic." Though as he said these words, he felt like he was trying to convince himself rather than Pepper; at least Pepper looked a bit happier.

"Well, I for one would like to meet this friend of yours. You should invite her to the award ceremony in Vegas; that is if you're still friends within the next two weeks."

"Oh, ha-ha, very funny," Tony chortled, but when he thought over Obi's comment he agreed. He did meet Evie for the first time just outside of Vegas. It could be like a little reunion. "You know what, you're right. I'll do that right now. Evie and I will probably have to go shopping for a new gown and everything," Tony mumbled under his breath, scrolling through his contacts on his phone.

"Tony, it is late, you should leave her alone," Pepper declared.

Tony caught that bitter tone in his assistant's voice. Was Pepper jealous of Evie? He read the time on his wrist-watch and huffed when he discovered that Pepper was right. It was 9:30 in Miami. Once he returned to New York after his lunch with Evie, the meetings took longer than he expected. He could had stayed the night in his penthouse at Stark Tower, but for some reason he wanted to go back to Miami as soon as possible. Tony's leg bounced impatiently when he tried getting his mind off of calling Evie.

"It's not that late," he uttered, dialing Evie's number. The line rang a total of five times, and just when Tony thought that Evie wasn't going to answer, she did.

"H-hello?"

Tony's brows furrowed in concern. She sounded...off. "Evie?" he said her name with worry, straightening up in his seat. "What's wrong?" He forgot all about Pepper and Obi on the plane with him.

"Hm...? Oh, nothing, I'm fine. Just tired I guess," she replied.

Tony remained doubtful. "Did I wake you?"

"No, no, you didn't..." she trailed off. He was waiting for her to continue, but when she didn't he only became more worried.

"Evie...?"

"Uh, Tony, I think I should go to bed. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Evie? Evie, wait... Evie?" Tony stared down at his phone. She hung up on him. Did he say something wrong? Was it the awkwardness of their lunch? The almost kiss? _Stupid_, he inwardly cursed at himself. He probably scared her off with his forwardness. She was different; much more sweet and timid than he usually went for. He held his chin in deep thought, gazing out of his window at the passing clouds.

"Is everything all right?" Pepper cautiously questioned, tone laced with concern.

Tony's lips parted to speak, but the beep of his phone caught his attention. He peered down at the bright screen, at what Jarvis just sent him; the English translation of the text from the journal—

"_Power of Drusilla rise.  
>Course unseen across the skies.<br>Come to me, I call you near.  
>Come to me and settle here.<em>"

_Holy shit,_ Tony's mind was blown. Was it him, or did that sound a lot like a spell to summon some person named Drusilla? And Evie read this out loud to herself? Tony fished out the journal from his jacket pocket, again. He flipped to the last page, scanning the words with his own eyes. What was Evie's mother in to? When he flipped over to the first entry, reading the journal from start to finish, Tony didn't know what to think. Evelyn's mother, at sixteen, just expected for fame to fall into her lap just because she could kick really high and keep up with a beat? And when times were getting hard (which was natural) she got all piss-y because she didn't become some Broadway starlet overnight. Plus, by the sounds of the strange man coming up to her at a bar- the encounter seemed shade-y. He probably fed her some crap that gave her hope and delusion that he would help her make it big. Then again, he probably could have been an actual agent- Barbra Addams was a well known name in the dancing community.

Tony's phone beeped again; Jarvis had attached a few files of what he could find on women named Evelyn Marie Addams. There were four whom match the description Tony wanted, but he was quick to narrow it down to Evie when he spotted a recent photo of her on one of the files. He opened the file, reading through the abundant amount of information Jarvis found. Tony was amazed. He got up from his seat and headed for the cockpit.

Knocking on the door before opening it, Tony saw the pilot busy at work. "Hey, Larry, do you have any plans after we land?" he inquired, sitting on the empty co-pilot seat.

"Not really. Do you need me, sir?" asked Larry.

"I need to go back to New York. I'll double your salary," Tony declared. He had had Larry take him back and forth between New York and Malibu twice already, and asking him to do it one more time must be tiring even though it was his job to fly Tony wherever he wants, whenever he wants.

"We would need to refuel. Are you in a rush?"

Tony shook his head. "No, but I would like to leave as soon as possible."

"Your drink is ready, Mr. Stark." The flight attendant held out a silver platter with the crystal glass filled with amber liquid.

"Thank you." Tony took the drink. "Oh, and I'm gonna need you to stay on the clock. I'm going back to New York for a couple of days."

A wide, flirtatious smile spread across the flight attendants face. "Yes, Mr. Stark." She winked and strutted away, hips swaying.

Tony's eyes trailed after her, taking a sip of his drink. Should he had told her that he was planning on bringing along another woman, and that it was not another one of their little "get togethers" that they sometimes have whenever he's too lazy to seduce another woman during extended flights?

When the plane landed back in Malibu, Tony was quick to ditch Pepper and Obi with Happy as their driver; he called a cab. He wanted to get home as fast as possible to pack for his trip back to New York, and he didn't want to wait for Happy to drop off Obi and Pepper at their homes first (it would take up too much valuable time of convincing Evie's sister, Rachel, to let Evie come with him).

Rachel Blake was really protective of her older sister, and Tony was completely terrified of her.

However, instead of going home, Pepper had Happy take her to Tony's house, where she had caught him packing and demanded to know what he was planning.

"Tony, I don't like this," Pepper spoke warily.

"I'll only be gone for a couple days, Pep. Stop worrying. It's not like I haven't done this before," Tony scoffed, briefly pausing from his packing to cast a glance towards his assistant.

He had just finished explaining to Pepper why he had to go back to New York for a couple of days with Evie, and her response of her not liking the idea kind of irritated him. Why couldn't she understand that he had to do this for Evie?

"But you're taking a woman that you've only known for five days with you. What's so special about her that you're doing all of this just to impress her?"

Tony could hear the jealousy in Pepper's tone, and he sighed. "This isn't just a woman, Pepper, it's Evie," he chortled. "She's harmless, and I'm not doing this to impress her. I'm helping her, I told you that. She needs my help-"

"No, she _asked_ for your help. You could have turned her down like you do with the others," Pepper intervened.

"We'll be staying at my penthouse above Stark Towers. If you need anything, you can just jump right over," Tony continued, ignoring Pepper's remark.

"Why can't I come with you?" she wondered. "There are things that even I need you around for."

Tony went rigged at Pepper's question. He didn't want her to learn of the reason why he was helping Evie; it was Evie's personal business, and he only knew about it because she let him know. "You can't," he replied, "it's private."

"Tony," Pepper's tone was soft and wet. Tony knew that she was close to tears, but he didn't turn around to face her. He hated seeing women cry, it made him feel like an ass. "Is there something going on between you and this woman that you want to tell me about?"

"I..." Tony didn't know how to respond. "...I...care for her, yes." He finally summoned up the courage to gaze up at Pepper, expecting to see a heartbroken expression on her face, but he was surprised to see that she was well composed. Her eyes were red and watery, but her face was stoic.

Tony hadn't told Pepper that he had feelings for her. He had given her the diamond bracelet to show his appreciation for everything that she had done for him, but even he couldn't deny the sexual tension between him and the beautiful red-head: the constant flirting, the knowing smiles...All that would stop if Tony (or she) got into a serious relationship. And lets be honest, Tony never expected for him to be the one to find someone first. So, yes, this was a shock. If Evie came into the picture, things between him and Pepper would change.

Pepper pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes, and when she opens them again, she said as calm and rationally as possible, "Need I remind you that it's five in the morning?"

She was changing the subject, again. Tony's jaw clenched. There had been times before where he would cross the line a little with Pepper, leaving the outcome up to her, but every time he took a step forward, she would always take a step back. So their not being together already was as much as her fault as it was his.

"I know," Tony replied, clearing his throat. He had a plan already formulating in his head on how he could convince Rachel to let him take Evie for a couple of days.

**[Evelyn]**

As soon as Tony dropped her off at Rachel's house after lunch, Evelyn's mind was filled with inappropriate thoughts about him, and in order to take her mind off of Tony and their almost kiss, she dived right back into watching the surveillance tapes of her old room at The Place, still dressed in her deep purple, flowing dress.

Evelyn just so happened to glance at the wall-clock, panicking when she noticed that it was almost time for Rachel and Richard to come home. She had to hide the the evidence! Scrambling to put all of the VHS tapes back into the box, Evelyn unplugs the old VHS player and stuffed it into the box as well. She struggled to drag the flimsy cardboard to her room and then quickly undressed and redressed into some house clothes. But she suddenly gasped; she forgot to plug the Blu-ray player back into the TV! Running back into the living room, she reconnected the wires, but during the job she saw that she was still wearing the hospital band. She groaned aloud. She looked back to the wall-clock. _I've still got time._ Bolting to her room in order to put away the hospital band, Evelyn's legs collided with the box, causing her to fall forward and onto the floor. She knocked over the box, again.

"Ow," she moaned in pain, rolling over onto her back. She landed on something rectangular and hard. Pulling it out from underneath her, she frowns at the tape. She was about to toss it aside when she read what was on the label: Evidence. She sharply sat up. Evidence? What kind of evidence?

The front door opened. "Evie, are you home?" Richard called out.

"Yeah," Evelyn shouted back. "Hey, Richard, do you have a spare TV that I can use in my room?"

"Uh...yeah. I think we have an old box one in the garage. I'll get it for you."

Evelyn's eyes widened at the mess in her room. She couldn't risk letting Richard see any of it. "Uh, no! I'll get it!" she shrieked, clearing her throat after mentally cursing herself for her voice squeaking.

If Richard saw the tapes then he would probably tell Rachel, and then – BAM! – Evelyn's dead. She wasn't suppose to know about her past. Dashing to the garage, mumbling a quick 'hello' to Richard as she passed him, Evelyn searched for the TV that he mentioned. Finding it, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was, in fact, a small TV; something that she could carry with her toothpick arms. Taking the TV to her room, again quickly mumbling a 'hello' to Richard as she passed him, Evelyn fell to her knees and plugged in the TV in the nearest outlet.

The house soon erupted with laughter, screams from Danny, and the pitter-patter of tiny feet. Rachel and the kids were home.

"I brought home dinner!" Rachel sang. "Everyone in the dining room before it gets cold!" Evelyn choose to ignore her sister's call for dinner, and crawled over to the door to quickly lock it before Rachel barged in when she didn't show up at the table. Crawling back to the TV, she sat on her legs and connected the VHS player.

"Evie?" Rachel knocked. "It's time for dinner."

"I'm not hungry," Evelyn called back, looking at the closed door. Even though she hasd only eaten lunch with Tony hours ago, her stomach felt empty but not hungry at the same time. Nerves. She was too focused on the tapes and such to worry about nutrition.

The doorknob jiggled. "Evie? Why do you have the door locked?"

"I'm, uh, naked. I just got out of the shower," Evelyn lied. "You guys go ahead and eat without me."

"Is something going on that you want to tell me about?" Rachel's tone held a hint of suspicion.

"Rach, I'm fine, honest. I—" Evelyn fumbled for words "—just feel guilty. I cheated and practiced some of the routines for the Swan Princess." She hated lying. "I'm punishing myself by locking myself in my room without supper."

"O...okay," Rachel replied, doubtful.

Evelyn listened for any signs of Rachel possibly standing outside of her door, and after a few minutes of silence, she twisted around and faced the TV. Peering down at the new tape she found, she contemplated about watching it. What kind of 'evidence' was on it? What if it wasn't about her, but about something she had no business knowing? Evelyn slide in the tape, pressing play.

The familiar face of Scott, her step-father, appeared on the screen. His graying hair was slicked back, and he was practically sneering at the camera- his steel gray eyes cold and hard.

"She's doing it again," he huffed. "I don't know what's wrong with this girl, but she knows things that she shouldn't." The camera moved, the lens zooming in on a little girl no older than three, playing in a vast yard of lush, green grass. "Strange things happen around her – just watch," Scott's tone died down to a whisper.

Evelyn automatically knew that the little girl playing merrily in the backyard was her. And the camera was on her tiny figure jumping around cheerfully in the yard. But nothing else was happening.

"She was doing it! I sear!" Scott growled, and maneuvers the camera to face him again. "She speaks like an adult- she talks to herself! That little girl is weird. Freaky. Not normal." He moved the camera back to face the yard, and he yelped.

So did Evelyn.

Her eyes were wide, and her mouth hung open in shock. The three-year-old version of herself was standing right in front of the camera and Scott. Just a few seconds ago she was yards away from them; it was as if she popped up out of nowhere! The picture fazed in and out, static filling the screen in flashes as a young Evelyn smirked at Scott and the camera. Her head cocked to the side slightly.

Evelyn frowned when she spotted something between the glitches. Pausing the tape, she openly gasped and clamps her hand over her mouth when she saw something terrifying. A face. A second face was mixed in with the face of her younger self. A face that was not Evelyn's; it had black eyes and a sadistic smile. That was when Evelyn realized...This was the tape that landed her in the hospital. A mental hospital.

A sharp pain erupted in her side. She clutched her stomach, grinding her teeth to contain the scream wanting to scrape out from her throat. It was her tattoo, again.

"Evelyn," a voice blew in her ear. Evelyn frantically tried to locate the source of the voice, but couldn't find it. What was going on? "Don't fight it, Evelyn...Just a little bit longer..." the same voice cackled, coming from everywhere and nowhere. Evelyn covered her ears with the palms of her hands. Tears pooled beneath her eyes, and she was trembling. "...I will get out..." She was crazy... She was nuts... This was what her mom didn't want her to find out. Best forgotten. And she was right... She was right. Evelyn should have left her past alone.

"Caramelle Dansen!"

Evelyn jumped, startled by the sound of her ring tone. Searching for her phone, she found it mixed with the other times that spilled out from the box when she tripped over it. She looked down at the caller ID, and saw that it was Tony calling. What timing. He just had to call her when she was going through a break down. She didn't want him to know about it, it might scare him away for good. She didn't want him to go away, he was the closet thing to a real friend she had in years (other than Marcus).

"H-Hello?" she answered, voice wavering. Her eyes still searched for the source of the unknown voice, hoping that there was a logical explanation, that she was not hearing voices in her head, that she was not crazy.

"Evie?" Tony's voice was laced with concern. "What's wrong?"

At his question, Evelyn's eyes veered to the screen of the small TV, at the black eyes on her younger self. "Hm...? Oh, nothing, I'm fine. Just tired I guess," she lied (non-too-smoothly). Her face slacked when, by itself, the tape began to play.

"Did I wake you?" Tony asked.

"No, no, you didn't..." Evelyn trailed off, busy watching the screen. A voice that should not belong to a three-year-old, the same voice that Evelyn heard call out her name, started to speak to Scott. "Scott, Scott, Scott," the young Evelyn tutted, shaking her head shamefully as if speaking to a child. "When are you ever going to learn? I'm not going anywhere." She grinned evilly, eyes visibly flashing black.

"What are you...?" Scott's voice murmured, frighted.

"Evie...?" Tony's voice broke the silence.

"Uh, Tony, I think I should go to bed. I'll call you tomorrow." Evelyn hung up the phone without much thought on how rude it was. Her attention was glued to the TV.

"I'm Evie, your step-daughter," the young Evelyn told Scott, smiling innocently, but her eyes reflected a completely different emotion: amusement. "You should be nice to me, Scott, or I'll tell Barbra."

"Your mother won't do a goddamn thing," Scott sneered. "Which is why I'm taking matter into my owns hands."

This seemed to anger little Evelyn, her small hands clenched tightly into fists. "She'll do whatever I tell her to do!" she bellowed. The glass of the sliding door behind her suddenly shatters to pieces.

Evelyn stared at the TV in disbelief, her mouth and eyes open wide.

"Oh, Scott, look at what you did." The little Evelyn shook her head. "That's gonna cost ya a pretty penny to fix. Now get rid of that camera, before I break it..."

Before Evelyn could see more of the tape, shock overcame her and her world faded black.

**[·]**

Her eyes opened as fast as a snap of the fingers. Her face was pressed up against the floor, her mouth open and drool trailed down to the floor, leaving a tiny wet spot on the carpet. Her racing heart slowed to a steady beat. Sluggishly sitting up, wiping the line of drool off of her chin, Evelyn groggily looked around her room. She fainted, right? Judging by the pounding in her head – yes.

She ran her fingers through her hair, noticing that it was damp with sweat. She had awoken from a dream that was quite intense, but oddly, she couldn't remember a lick of it. The feelings—the emotion—was still evident to her body, but she couldn't remember what she dreamed.

The small TV was still on, but the screen was blue. Picking up her cellphone, she saw that it was five in the morning, meaning that she was out for a good few hours. Body on autopilot, she staggered to her feet and began dumping all of the VHS tapes back into the cursed box that she found in the attic space; she even dumped the TV and VHS player in there. Dragging the box to her closet, she cleared a spot in the very back and then pushed the box there; she closed the door, never wanting to open it again. She was done. Curiosity peeked. She got in way over her head. She should had left her stupid past alone – a secret, like her mom said. Now look at what she'd done. She found out that she was a freak, an ex-mental patient.

Tired, simply exhausted, Evelyn fell – face first – onto the bed without moving aside the comforter and blankets. Staring off into space, her eyes flickered toward the calendar she pinned up to the wall. Just a few more weeks. Well, okay, a lot longer than a few weeks, but, soon. Soon she could go back home to good old New York; the crowded, ever busy, New York where she didn't have the time to worry about silly things like blocked memories – only dancing. Just the company and dancing. But... did she even care about getting the part anymore? Her obsession with wanting to be the Swan Princess seemed so childish now. She felt as if nothing else mattered anymore now that she knew that she was nuts.

No.

She couldn't let what she had learned get to her. Her life had to stay the same. She had to forget. She _could _forget – she'd obviously done it before. If anything, she should focus more on getting the part. Keep her mind busy.

Evelyn's eyelids grew heavy, and she closed her eyes to fall asleep...for a total of ten minutes. Her door slammed open, causing her to sharply sit up in alarm and gawk at the intruders: Tony and Rachel? Evelyn's jaw slacked at the blurriness of the two standing at her doorway. Didn't she lock the door, though? How in the heck did they get in?

"Thank you, Rachel," Tony directed to Evelyn's sister without really looking at her.

"Whatever," Rachel mumbled. "I'm going back to bed."

"Are you – do you know what time it is?" Evelyn sputtered, completely flabbergasted. She reached for her glasses and swung her legs over the side of the bed, standing up.

"Yes, and frankly we're wasting time chit-chatting." Tony got behind Evelyn, firmly clamps his hands over her shoulders and lead her out of her room, guiding her towards the front door.

"Wha...? Why are we...can I at least change out of these night clothes? Or put on some shoes?"

"Everything you need is in the car, and whatever we don't have, we'll get when we get there," said Tony.

"Where are we going?" she asked, brows furrowed.

Tony's car was parked out front, and he opened the passenger door for her.

There was a manila folder on the passenger's seat.

"I had Jarvis look you up, and after reading through your files, I found a place that may hold all the answers to your questions about your past," Tony explained as Evelyn flipped through the papers in the folder. "The thing is," he winked, "it's in New York."

Evelyn looked up from the folder, asking with wide eyes and a slacked jaw, "We're going to New York?"

"Already have the plane fueled up and waiting." Tony grinned mischievously. "So what do ya say? Ready to go on a little adventure with me?" Evelyn parted her lips to respond, but he interrupts. "Too late!" and he speed off.

Evelyn laughed and buckled her seat belt. She opened the folder again, reading through it. "New York State Asylum," she read out loud from the first page. It was forms about her from the state hospital.

"You were admitted there when you were five for Dissociative Identity Disorder; according to your step-father, who was the one who admitted you. You were then discharged under your mother's care when you were thirteen."

Wow. Did he honestly read through all her files? "You know all of this, and you still..." _Talk to me._ Evelyn was confused.

"Like I told you—" he shrugged, a smirk on his lips as he glances at her from over the rim of his sunglasses "—I've dated worse."

"Worse than _this_?" Evelyn gestured to her file. It didn't even phase her that he mentioned 'dated' and her in the same sentence.

"WAY worse," he said. "They weren't even classified as insane, and still they couldn't comprehend the meaning of a one night stand. I've been stalked, I've had windows broken, been slapped a few hundred times, even had a few paternity suits with women I've never met before- discounting the fact that I don't really remember more than half of the women I've slept with," he mumbled the last few words.

"I don't know..." Evelyn gnawed on her bottom lip. "I'm beginning to have second thoughts about learning what happened to me, Tony. I saw some old tapes of myself, and...They're scary. I fainted!"

"You fainted?" Tony raised a brow.

"I fainted," she repeated firmly, nodding.

"Was that what you were upset about last night when I called?"

Evelyn nodded, noticing that for some reason Tony looked relieved by her answer. "I'm sorry if I caused you to worry," she apologized. "And I am sorry that I made you do all of this for me, I can-"

"Evie, Evie – stop apologizing."

"I'm-"

He raised up a hand to shut her up from saying 'I'm sorry' again. "And, as for all of this. I did this out of my own free will because I care about you_uurr_ past." He cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

Evelyn bashfully smiled. "Well, since you went through all this trouble, I suppose it's worth a look." Her smile soon morphed into a wide, toothy grin. "We're off to New York!" She cheered and threw her hands up in the air. "Gosh, I miss New York. Hey, while we're there can we swing by my apartment real quick? That way you don't have to buy me clothes."

Tony shrugged. "Sure, no problem. I'd love to see where you live."

Evelyn bit her bottom lip and a warm feeling pooled within her chest. Wait, no! Bad feelings, bad!

Tony turned into the strip way of the airport, parking in front of a large white jet with bold, blue letters on the side reading: Stark Industries. Evelyn bounced on her seat, face pressed up against the window.

"We're going on your plane?" she squealed with excitement. She had never been on a private plane before. "Yay!"

A flight attendant and a man dressed as the pilot waited outside of the plane, next to the steps leading inside of Tony's jet.

"Everything ready for take off, Larry?" Tony asked, strolling up to the pilot.

"Ready to leave when your are, Mr. Stark." Larry nodded.

"Evie, this is Larry, my personal flight captain. Larry, this is Evie," Tony introduced.

"Hi, Larry." Evie waved enthusiastically.

"Pleasure to meet you, Evie," Larry replied, politely dipping his head once.

"And this is Mary. She's going to be our flight attendant." Tony gestured to the flight attendant. "Whenever you want something, call her and she'll get it for you."

"Cool. But don't worry, I probably won't even ask for anything," she directed to Mary.

"All right." Tony clamped his hands together. "Lets go to New York!"

"Yay!" Evelyn cheered, running up the stairs and into the plane. "Wow," she gasped. The plane was luxurious: cream interior; spacious, comfortable chairs; and there were even tables bolted to the floor. When Evelyn sat down on one of the chairs, she cooed at the feel of the cool, soft material. _This is what heaven must be like._

"Like it?" Tony raised a brow, an amused smile is on his face, and his eyes shined bright. He sat on the seat in front of hers, slouching and looking completely at home, comfortable. He must be on the plane a lot.

Evelyn nodded, bringing her knees up to her chest and tucking her feet underneath her bum. "Are you kidding me?" She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "This is the most amazing place I've ever been in – ever. It's both sad and exhilarating at the same time."

Tony chuckled, and Evelyn giggled. They locked gazes, taking each other in. Evelyn was still completely baffled on exactly why Tony was doing so much for her when they only knew each other for a few days. But, with Tony she felt at ease, like she could tell him anything. They just clicked. The moment was interrupted when Mary began speaking through the intercom, instructing Tony and Evelyn to fasten their seat belts for take off.

They were going to New York. Evelyn was both scared and excited; excited because she missed the bustling city, but scared because they were not going there for fun, they were going there to go to...The Place...

_Oh no,_ she gulped.

* * *

><p><strong><span>Next Time On <em>The Game Changer<em>:** Unimaginable occurrences only escalate when Tony and Evelyn reach New York.

(There is a poll on my page, asking which story I should focus on/publish next. Please take it when you can.)


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